Center for Health Market Innovations (CHMI)

Programs

Stop Malaria Project (SMP)

last updated Sep 27, 2011

Overview

Implementing organization: 
Johns Hopkins School of Public Health: Center for Communication Programs
Implementation Partner(s): 
Malaria Consortium, Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), Communication for Development Uganda (CDFU) and the Uganda Health Marketing Group (UHMG).
Legal Status: 
Public-private partnership
Year Launched: 
2008
Stage: 
Short-term project
Income Level of Target Population: 
All income levels

Funding

Primary Source of Funding: 
Donor
Funders: 
US President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), USAID
Summary: 

The Stop Malaria Project (SMP), implemented in Uganda from 2008 to 2013, is aiming to increase the coverage and use of key life-saving malaria interventions in Uganda. The project relies on a frontline of Voluntary Health Teams (VHTs) to address malaria prevention and treatment in the project communities. VHTs are trained to carry out community sensitization and house-to-house visits providing information about prevention and treatment of malaria such as early treatment seeking behavior, Intermittent Preventive Treatment during pregnancy (IPTp), consistent use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets and male involvement.

Program goals/rationale: 

Uganda is considered one of the countries in the world most affected by malaria, with about 70,000 to 110,000 people dying every year due to the disease. On average, a person suffers from malaria six times per year, making it the leading cause of illness and death and accounting for almost 25-40 percent of health centre visits, 20 percent of all health facilities admissions and 15 percent of in-patient deaths. The Stop Malaria Project was launched to curb malaria deaths, particularly among expectant mothers and children under five.

The project aims to reach 85% coverage for children under five, pregnant women, and people living with HIV/AIDS using proven preventive and therapeutic interventions such as Artemesinin-based Combination Therapy (ACTs) for treatment of uncomplicated malaria, Intermittent Presumptive Treatment of malaria in pregnancy (IPTp), and Long-Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLINs). The Project also aims at improving and implementing malaria prevention programs, diagnosis and treatment activities in support of the National Malaria Strategy.

Key program components: 

The SMP uses a combination of approaches, including behavior change interventions, service delivery strengthening and institutional capacity building, to rapidly scale-up established interventions for malaria prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.

The project aims to distribute 17 million nets throughout the country. In the first phase, nearly seven million nets will be handed out to cover pregnant women and children under 5 in selected sub-counties in all districts in need of the nets. The remaining 10 million nets, to be distributed in the second phase across the same districts, will ensure that there is one net for every two people. The Ministry of Health is working with various partner agencies and 16 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to send the nets from Kampala to the subcounties, and then to the villages. Village Health Teams (VHTs) will visit everyone’s homes to register the number of houses and people in the household. They will also inform their communities when and where the distribution will take place, as well as carry out the actual distribution at parishes. Together with the village leaders, VHTs will explain to communities the causes of malaria, how it can be prevented by consistently sleeping under nets, and how to take care of the nets so they can be used for several years. VHTs will also help ensure the nets have been hung properly after the distribution.

A total of 406 VHTs have so far been trained in Masaka district (Bukakata and Kibinge sub counties), 308 VHTs trained in Rakai district (Kyebe and Kachera sub counties) and 317 VHTs trained in Mukono district (Nagojje and Namuganga sub counties).

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