[afro-nets] Rational Medicine Management: Focus on HIV, Tb, Malaria

[Karin Wiedenmayer <karin.wiedenmayer@unibas.ch>]

Rational Medicine Management: Focus on HIV, Tb, Malaria
-------------------------------------------------------

28 August ­ 9 September 2006
Ifakara, Tanzania

Dear colleagues,

we are pleased to announce the sixth international training
course on Rational Medicine Management - A Focus on HIV/AIDS, Tb
and Malaria


CONTENTS OVERVIEW

Health is an intrinsic human right as well as a central input to
poverty reduction and socioeconomic development. Cost-effective
interventions including medicines for controlling major diseases
exist, but a lack of money for health and a range of system con-
straints hamper efforts to expand health services to the poor.

 From penicillin to insulin, antiseptics to antiretrovirals, sci-
ence including medicines has led to dramatic improvements in
health worldwide. Yet the main diseases of poverty such as
HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis continue to claim innumerable
lives in the developing world. Medicines are an essential and
cost-effective tool of health care and an important element of
health systems. The number and type of medicines on the world
market is constantly increasing, while financial resources for
health care services in general remain limited or decrease. To-
day, for millions of people worldwide essential medicines remain
unavailable and unaffordable. Irrational medicine use is a
global public health problem. Counterfeit and poor quality medi-
cines are an additional barrier to equitable access to medi-
cines. Millions of adults and children die each year from treat-
able and preventable diseases. Reducing illness and premature
mortality contributes to poverty reduction.

It is about getting evidence-based and effective control inter-
ventions such as medicines to the people who need them, whether
by reducing their costs, promoting research and development, im-
proving their distribution, increasing their efficacy and ac-
ceptability, or slowing down the development of antimicrobial
resistance. But, today these medicines don?t reach all who need
them, and there is a need to develop adequate strategies that
ensure better access. Rational medicine policy and management is
one approach to tackle these problems and is critically impor-
tant in view of constrained health budgets to achieve effi-
ciency, equity and quality of health care in pluralistic health
systems.

OBJECTIVES

To enable health professionals to understand and apply the con-
cepts and principles of essential medicines and rational medi-
cine management with a focus on the diseases of poverty
HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis, to recognise the need for a
national and international medicine policy environment, to im-
prove knowledge and skills and to gain practical field experi-
ence for rational medicine management within different health
system contexts.

COURSE TOPICS

? Historic milestones and current global medicine situation in
different health care systems
? Concept of essential medicines and its relevance in primary
health care
? Concept and principles of rational medicine management in plu-
ralistic and reforming health systems
? Roles of different stakeholders including health workers, tra-
ditional healers, research organisations and the pharmaceutical
industry
? The international context, global treaties and national medi-
cine policy
? Treatment guidelines, essential medicine lists and personal
medicine lists
? Patterns of medicine use, strategies for the promotion of ra-
tional medicine use, community medicine use
? Antimicrobial resistance and approaches for containment
? Medicine quality and quality assurance
? Rational management of HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis re-
lated treatment within their respective global initiatives
? Framework and components of a medicine supply system including
procurement and distribution
? Elements of medicine costs, affordability and financing op-
tions
? Critical medicine information management

TARGET GROUP

Health professionals and managers with experience (at least two
years) in the health sector and in the pharmaceutical sector.


DURATION

2 weeks (90 hours student investment time). Equivalent to 3 ECTS
points towards the TropEd European Master in International
Health.

COURSE FORMAT

The course language is English. The course combines lectures,
in-depth discussions of case studies, short presentations, small
group exercises and field visits. The course is highly partici-
patory and participants will be exposed to a wide range of in-
ternational experiences and materials.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Please fill in the application form carefully and include all
required documents.
Application deadline: 15 June 2006

COURSE FEE

The total course fee is CHF 1?500.- (Swiss Francs) and must be
paid 8 weeks before the start of the course. This sum includes
the registration fee (CHF 100.-) which is due at the moment of
acceptance. If a participant does not attend the course, the
registration fee cannot be reimbursed. If cancellation is less
than 4 weeks before beginning of the course an additional fee of
CHF 500.- will be charged. Cost for international flights and
accommodation/full board in Ifakara must be added. Details on
the prices can be given on request

There are only very limited scholarships available for this
course.

LOCATION
Ifakara Training Centre
Ifakara, Tanzania

COURSE FACULTY

The course is facilitated by international and national experts.
The academic panel will include a number of highly experienced
professionals from WHO, MEDUNSA (Limpopo), Phasuma, Nuffield
(Leeds), STI, Tanzanian MOH, MSH and IHRDC.

COURSE COORDINATORS

Dr. Karin Wiedenmayer (STI)
http://www.sti.ch
Dr. Reinhard Huss (Nuffield)
http://www.leeds.ac.uk/hsphr/ihd

CONTACT ADDRESS

Swiss Tropical Institute
Course Secretariat
Socinstrasse 57
P.O Box
4002 Basel / Switzerland
Tel: +41-61-284-8280
Fax: +41-61 284 8106
mailto:courses-sti@unibas.ch
http://www.sti.ch

THE SWISS TROPICAL INSTITUTE

The Swiss Tropical Institute (STI) was founded in 1943. The STI
offers an interdisciplinary approach to research, teaching and
services in the field of International Health. The aim of the
STI is to contribute to the improvement of the health of popula-
tions internationally and nationally through excellence in re-
search, services and teaching and training. Activities of the
Institute in the framework of its national and international
mandates have led to its world-wide recognition in the field of
International Health. The STI has significant expertise in the
pharmaceutical sector with teaching and training, research,
clinical trials, assessments and implementation verification and
international development cooperation. The unit ?Teaching and
Training? offers postgraduate courses in various topics for
health staff.

TROPED

A collaborative network of 27 Tropical Institutes and related
institutions in 13 different countries in Europe offers a joint
modular Master?s Curriculum in International Health (MIH). The
Diploma Course ?Health Care and Management in Tropical Countries
­ HCMTC? at STI is equivalent to the core course for this de-
gree. Candidates for the Master?s degree will be required to
take further advanced modules in at least 2 other network-
institutions and to carry out a master thesis according to MIH
requirements. The whole curriculum corresponds to one year full
time work. The modular structure allows the studies to be spread
over 5 years.
For further information: www.troped.org

--
Karin Wiedenmayer, MSc, PharmD
Swiss Tropical Institute
Swiss Center for International Health
Socinstrasse 57
4002 Basel, Switzerland
Tel. +41-61-284 8126
Fax: +41-61-271-8654
mailto:karin.wiedenmayer@unibas.ch
http://www.sti.ch