WWARN at ASTMH 2011
WWARN ran a successful booth and hosted several meetings at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in Philadelphia, USA, from 4-8 December 2011.
The presentation of a new tool to standardise the estimation of parasite clearance from WWARN mathematical modeller Dr Jennifer Flegg was well attended. Several independent groups working in Asia and Africa reported studies using the tool. WWARN also featured prominently in the poster sessions, with 11 posters highlighting specific aspects of WWARN’s work.
Presented jointly with Global Health Trials, our booth acted as a hub for people working in the field of antimalarial resistance to meet and make contacts. The congress also provided an opportunity for four WWARN study groups to meet for the first time and plan their next steps, including scientific discussions on the plan of analysis and priority data.
Watch this video, showcasing our work to tackle antimalarial resistance, which appeared on our booth.
Sixth EDCTP Forum
On 9 October 2011, WWARN and Global Health Trials hosted a satellite meeting entitled “Professional Recognition, Career Development and Training for Clinical Research Investigators and Staff” to be held at the Sixth EDCTP Forum at the United Nations Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The meeting was co-hosted by Africa Regional Directors, Dr Louis Penali and Dr Ambrose Talisuna, who described WWARN’s tools and services developed to ensure the quality of assessment of antimalarial drug efficacy. WWARN aims to collate the evidence necessary to extend the useful life of effective medicines, enabling the global public health community to meet the malaria-related Millennium Development Goals. Global Health Trials, WWARN and EDCTP’s East African Consortium for Clinical Research are working together to develop 16 short e-learning courses designed to cover every step, process and issue around conducting high-quality clinical studies in malaria.
Malaria Community Forum in Central Africa
From 6-8 June 2011, WWARN will be joining the Central Africa Network on Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and Malaria (CANTAM) at the Malaria Community Forum in Central Africa.
The meeting in Brazzaville, Congo, will focus on tools for the surveillance of antimalarial drug efficacy. It aims to bring the regional malaria community together to address the need for research to monitor the spread of antimalarial drug efficacy in Central Africa. WWARN's Executive Director Philippe Guerin will discuss the Network's mission and the global and regional problems associated with antimalarial resistance.
Eastern Africa Sub-Regional Network Annual Meeting
WWARN will be showcasing its tools and support materials at Roll Back Malaria’s regional general assembly, from 4-8 April 2011, in Mombasa, Kenya.
WWARN’s regional representative will be on hand to demonstrate WWARN Explorer, an online analysis tool to view studies of antimalarial drug resistance in four areas - clinical trials, pharmacology, in vitro drug testing, and molecular markers of resistance. There will also be a presentation advocating for increased, regular surveillance in the face of threatening artemisinin resistance spread from Southeast Asia.
Potential collaborators, scientists and public health laboratories are invited to find out more about the WWARN project.
Annual Meeting of the East African Clinical Research Consortium
WWARN will be giving an overview of its work to tackle antimalarial resistance at the East African Clinical Research Consortium, from 18-19 April 2011 at the Kilimanjaro Clinical Research Institute, Moshi.
World Malaria Day 2011
WWARN will be joining partners from the Malaria Control and Evaluation Partnership in Africa at the Program for Appropriate Technology for Health in Seattle on 25 April 2011. This year’s theme is ‘Counting Malaria Out’—reflecting on successes in the fight against malaria and the challenges that still exist. WWARN is hosting a stand in the Community Marketplace, followed by a presentation from Scientific Director Carol Sibley.
