Mass Drug Distribution on Pemba Island, Zanzibar

The Kichocho (Bilharzia) Control Campaign on Pemba Island has started the first treatment programme for Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminths in Tanzania.

The Kichocho (Bilharzia) Control Campaign on Pemba Island has started the first treatment programme for Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminths in Tanzania. Mass community drug distribution of Praziquantel (for schistosomiasis) and Albendazole (for Soil Transmitted Helminths) took place on the 22nd-23rd May and 5th-6th June 2004. Full credit for this campaign goes to Mr Hamad Haji (SCI Zanzibar Coordinator) and the staff of the Public Health Laboratory.

The programme was officially launched on January 6th 2004 by the President of Zanzibar His Excellency Mr Amano Karume. Immediately thereafter, a National Committee was formed to develop policy guidelines for treatment in Zanzibar, both for Pemba Island and for Unguja Island, where treatment will follow. District meetings were held to advocate the new control initiative. Baseline data collection in 16 schools and 10 communities on the island was complete by the end of April and prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis was found to be 65% among the school children and 37% in the communities surveyed. This justified a community-based approach to control and provided one of the first opportunities to integrate control programmes for different diseases.

The Global Programme for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) has been treating the whole community on Pemba since 2001, distributing Ivermectin and Albendazole in October each year. Due to the similarities in calculating dosage of the drugs using a height pole in both lymphatic filariasis and schistosomiasis control, the same community drug distribution assistants were trained to administer the drugs. They distributed Ivermectin and Albendazole in October 2003 and distributed Praziquantel and Albendazole seven months later. In this way, the communities of Pemba received 2 doses annually for the treatment of STH’s, maximising their potential health benefits.

One week prior to treatment, intensive community mobilization took place with political, health and religious teams holding community briefings for sensitisation. Drugs, treatment registers and height poles were delivered to the Primary Health Care Facilities (PHCF) across the Island for collection by the community drug distributors. On the first weekend of treatment, the PHL team was joined by Mr Juma Rajib Juma, Director of Preventive Services, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Zanzibar and from the SCI, Dr Lynsey Blair, who had the opportunity to visit the communities and see the treatment programme in action. One very positive aspect was the high demand for the drug by all members of the community.

An estimated 300,000 people received treatment during the distribution campaign, with coverage over 75% of the eligible population. Drugs remain available throughout the year at the health care units for those who missed, or were excluded from, treatment in this round. The next treatment will take place for lymphatic filariasis in October 2004 and for schistosomiasis again early 2005.