Continue efforts to end malaria

THE effort to fight malaria must remain as Papua New Guinea continues to have the highest malaria burden among West Pacific countries.
Stakeholders must show Commitment to support the prevention of infection, illness and death through preventive and case management services, while maintaining a safe environment for patients and its respective workers.
Deaths due to malaria and its comorbidities (anaemia, under nutrition, etc) must continue to be prevented.
Malaria is found in more than 100 countries, mainly in tropical areas of the world including PNG.
PNG reports one million malaria cases annually, with 800 people dying from the disease every year.
Malaria cases dropped over a 10-year period before this, however, in recent years there has been a dramatic resurgence of the disease. Unfortunately, with the slow transmission of data from rural health centres and aid posts PNG does not have updated statistics.
If 10 years ago, statistics out from a centre showed that out of the 95 patients tested, 72 came back positive imagine how many in other areas.
Malaria remains one of the worst public health problems in PNG. It is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a parasite that infects a type of mosquito which feeds on humans.
Once an infected mosquito bites a human, the parasites multiply in the host’s liver before infecting and destroying their red blood cells.
It can also transmit deadly and debilitating illnesses such as malaria, zika, lymphatic filariasis, West Nile virus, chikungunya, yellow fever and dengue.
Research by the Institute of Medical Research shows a nine-fold increase in the number of malaria cases in PNG between 2014 and 2017.
The rising number of cases in PNG contributed to a spike in the number of recorded malaria cases worldwide which increased by two million from 2016 to 2017.
Globally, an estimated two billion malaria cases and 11.7 million malaria deaths were averted in the period 2000–2021.
Population Services International reports a little over 60 per cent of the population live in malaria risk areas with the disease particularly damaging to pregnant women and their unborn children.
The Covid-19 pandemic tested the resilience of robust health systems around the world including PNG. Ensuring access to core malaria prevention measures is an important strategy for reducing the strain on health systems.
Good news from World Health Organisation is that malaria-affected countries continue to respond to a host of challenges, including disruptions arising from the Coronavirus pandemic.
Although hard hit, most countries held the line and were able to maintain services to prevent, detect and treat malaria – a remarkable feat in the midst of a pandemic.
When health systems are overwhelmed, both direct mortality from an outbreak and indirect mortality from vaccine-preventable and treatable conditions increase dramatically.
Countries made difficult decisions to balance the demands of responding directly to the Covid-19, while simultaneously engaging in strategic planning and coordinated action to maintain essential health service delivery, mitigating the risk of system collapse.
The government is conscious of the fact and wants to get PNG free of malaria.
Health secretary Dr Obsorne Liko, on World Malaria Day, said the Covid-19 disrupted the supply chain of malaria commodities and malaria diagnosis and treatment programme.
The Government of PNG will not achieve this on its own and hence needs its partners to make the fight against malaria a development priority is timely.
Malaria is a preventable and curable disease.
Primary health care is about caring for people and helping them improve their health, rather than treating a single disease or condition.
The message to our leaders is to invest in primary healthcare.