|
Shivam's Road to Recovery
 40-year old Harendra Giri lives with his wife, Bawli Devi, their seven children and his 74-year old mother in the village of Supaul, 5 km west of Patori. They live off a monthly income of INR 2500 (approximately $56 US) on a small piece of land owned by the family. The land is not profitable, so Harendra and his family sell clothes on their bicycle in nearby villages. The eldest child, aged 20, was married at 13 and has a 2-year old child. The youngest child of the family is Shivam, a 4-year old boy who has suffered from visceral leishmaniasis (VL, Kala Azar) for 2 years.
Shivam experienced fever and cold, chills and rigor for more than a month before the family could take him to the local rural village medical practitioner (RMP). The family borrowed money from relatives to pay for tests and treatment. "He gave injections and pills to no avail. He showed no signs of relent even after weeks. We were referred, by treating local practitioner, to Dr. A.K.Thakur, a trained medical doctor at the iOWH Patori Satellite Clinic," said his mother.
Dr. Thakur examined the child at the clinic and after conducting lab tests suspected VL. He informed the family that the treatment was available at the clinic. Bawli Devi, the proud mother of Shivam, decided to commute daily from their village for all 21 days of the treatment. The family walked from their village most of the time, except when Harendra Giri was available and they were able to use his bicycle.
"We were supported by the iOWH staff at the treatment site," said Bawli. "We braved rain, flood and strong wind during all 21 days of treatment, so much so that our umbrella was blown away by the wind and I had to cover my child with my sari. The roads to the site were inundated with flood and we had to follow railway tracks and wade through waterlogged roads to safely reach the site for treatment," said Bawli.
"My child is now doing fine. He weighed 8kg before the treatment began and weighed 15kg (33 pounds) after the treatment. He is doing fine and has shown no sign of illness since. My thanks to iOWH that my child is doing fine."
Ayesha's Affordable Treatment
 Ayesha Khatoon, is a mother of 4 children living with her husband and parents in Bajidpur chowk Usman village. Her husband, a low income migrant painter does not have a steady income.
Ayesha became sick. She felt breathless and feverish, had a burning sensation in her stomach, and became sensitive to heat. She was unable to take care of her four children and had to rely on her father to take care of them. "I first saw a local doctor who charged 500 R. I relentlessly vomited and didn't respond to medicine given by the local doctor," said Ayesha.
The local doctor was unable to diagnose the disease, so Ayesha traveled 7 km to the iOWH satellite clinic at Patori. At the clinic, Dr. A.K. Thakur diagnosed Ayesha with visceral leishmaniasis (VL).
"My father had VL while I was still a child and was treated in Patna. He had to use a lot of his own money to buy food and medicine," said Ayesha. "I was able to stay at the iOWH guest house with my children for free while I received free treatment at the Patori clinic, for the 21 days of treatment," said Ayesha.
A Message from Our CEO
 One of my greatest pleasures and pride as leader of iOWH, is knowing that we have such an extraordinary team of professionals. I am extremely honored to work with the dedicated staff in both San Francisco and India. The mission to provide accessible and affordable medicines to those who need it the most is long, tedious and often fraught with bumps in the road. Generally it takes 10 years to develop a medicine and bring it to market. At iOWH, we are fortunate that we have strong partnerships in the pharmaceutical industries that enable us to maintain our momentum as we close in on treatments for the diseases that kill so many people each day. The staff at iOWH is committed and loyal.
We are all grateful for your support and the confidence you have in us.
In gratitude,
Richard Chin, M.D., CEO
Who's Who at iOWH?
Tue Huu Nguyen
What is your role at iOWH?
Vice President Research and Preclinical Development, Project Team Leader Diarrheal Disease Program (DDP), and Project Team Leader, Artemisinin Project.
How long have you been here?
Will be 4 years this September.
What do you like best about your job?
The mission, partners, and collaborators.
How do you spend your time off work?
Spend time with family, play tennis with my son, exercise and travel with my wife.
In the next five years I would like to...
I would like to spend more time with my family, traveling the world with my wife of 34 years.
Heather Kelly
What is your role at iOWH?
I work on both access and clinical projects. Currently I am helping to manage study start-up activities on the clinical trial for PMIM in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, and preparing an access study that will focus on community-level referral systems around VL diagnosis, also in Mymensingh.
How long have you been here?
Four and a half years. I started the same day as Rhonda (Sarnoff)!
What do you like best about your job?
There are new, unpredictable challenges every day that keep my job interesting. It is never boring.
How do you spend your time off work?
When I'm not at work, I'm reading, running, knitting, and playing with my toddler and my dog.
In the next five years I would like to...
I want to learn to scuba dive, grow a garden of carnivorous plants, and travel to interesting places with my family.
Raj Singh, Program Director, India
 What is your role at iOWH and what is your typical day like?
As the Program Director, I lead the iOWH team at the liaison field office in Patna, Bihar, and provide strategic direction for implementation of different programs including the Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) and Helminthiasis program.
A typical day at the office starts with taking stock of the work to be done on the day and delegating work to appropriate team members. Replying to the mails, meeting up with partners, team briefing/ meetings if required and ensuring a positive work environment in the office are some other routine activities in my day.
What inspired you to become a doctor and work in the field of public health?
As a class 7 student, I saw my grandmother's courageous battle with cancer and her will to win this one sided battle. This inspired me to provide hope to those who were in pain and suffering and I decided to become a doctor.
What do you find most fulfilling about your job?
Seeing the smile on the faces of Kala Azar (Visceral Leishmaniasis) patients after they have been successfully cured of the disease without "burning a hole in their pockets" is most fulfilling. Additionally the happiness expressed by the iOWH team members after a successful job is extremely gratifying.
Why do you think the work of iOWH is important?
Health care in resource constrained countries has always been challenged by the twin issues of ACCESS and AFFORDABILITY – each feeding the other and leading to a dangerous spiral of ill health leading to economic burden from which communities cannot escape. The work we do addresses these twin issues for Kala Azar (VL), a disease which affects the poorest of the poor in the most desperate communities and hence it's critical in the "developing world" context.
What is the impact of iOWH's work in India?
Detecting and curing around 1700 Kala Azar patients in India with Paromomycin IM, contributing to the strengthening of the private sector capacity to diagnose and manage KA, increasing community awareness about Kala Azar disease and control programs. All of this also contributes to the National Government's efforts to control this deadly disease in India.
Kenneth Cole Event
 iOWH teamed up with Kenneth Cole for a charity shopping event at their San Francisco flagship store on December 20, 2009. Guests sipped on wine and mingled with iOWH and Kenneth Cole employees. Shoppers were offered a discount on their purchases and the socially conscious fashion retailer donated 20% of the evening's proceeds to the organization.
iOWH was featured in Kenneth Cole's book AWEARNESS: Inspiring Stories About How to Make A Difference is a collection of stories and conversations by ninety individuals who have effected meaningful social change.
World Water Day 2010
"In many parts of the world, people take for granted the ability to turn on a tap for safe and clean water to drink, to cook, to wash. Yet, each year more than 1 billion people around the world have little choice but to resort to using potentially harmful sources of water," according to Shaye Stamatis, Associate Director of Project Management and Quality, iOWH.
The deadly impact of using unclean water is staggering.
- 1.8 million people die every year from diarrheal diseases, 90% are children under 5, mostly in developing countries.
- 88% of diarrheal diseases are attributed to unsafe water supply.
- 1.3 million people die of malaria each year, again, attributed to unsafe water.
Monday, March 22 was World Water Day. At iOWH, we marked the day by advocating for clean water and saluting those who work hard to bring safe drinking water to communities in the developing world.
The root of this underlying catastrophe lies in these plain, grim facts: 4 of every 10 people in the world do not have access to even a simple pit latrine and nearly 2 in 10 have no source of safe drinking-water.
This perpetuates a silent humanitarian crisis that kills some 3900 children every day and continues a cycle of disease and poverty. Water is Life.
World Malaria Day 2010
 By the time you read this message, somewhere in the world, one child has died from malaria.
April 25th marked World Malaria Day which recognizes the global effort to reduce the impact of this preventable and treatable disease. About half of the world's population is at risk for malaria, particularly those in lower income countries.
"Every 30 seconds, a child dies from malaria. At iOWH we are working hard every day to create affordable and accessible treatments so that these children can grow and thrive," said Tue Huu Nguyen, Vice President Research and Preclinical Development and Project Team Leader, Artemisinin Project of iOWH. "Our current malaria project will help us move closer to eliminate deaths from malaria in the near future. We are striving to fulfill the promise of medicine to those in need, for those affected by malaria and other infectious diseases."
"Supported by our funder, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and in collaboration with our partners, sanofi aventis, Amyris Biotechnologies, Inc., and the Jay Keasling Laboratories at UC Berkeley, we are in the final stages of developing a process for making semi-synthetic Artemisinin, a critical component in lifesaving Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy (ACT), the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended first line treatment for uncomplicated malaria. This process when commercialized, will make it much more affordable for patients in developing countries. We are making the best scientific technology available for everyone, democratizing modern drugs. Please join us in our mission to raise awareness and continue the fight against malaria," said Dr. Nguyen.
Aid from the United Kingdom
 iOWH received a grant from the Department for International Development (DFID) in the United Kingdom (UK) to help develop safe, effective and affordable new medicines for people with infectious diseases. This funding was announced Thursday April 1, 2010, by the UK International Development Minister, Mike Foster.
"One in every six people on Earth suffers from one or more neglected and infectious diseases. With DFID as a top investor in international health research, we are grateful that this grant will enable us to continue to execute our strategic plan for malaria, diarrhea and visceral leishmaniasis in endemic regions to improve availability of, access to, and uptake of essential medicines," said Richard Chin, CEO of iOWH. While funding from DFID will support all of iOWH's disease program areas, the focus will be on developing a new treatment for diarrhea, which is the second biggest child killer in the world, claiming the lives of 4,000 children every day. The world's poorest countries are hit the hardest because of a lack of clean water, basic sanitation and effective treatment. People living in poverty often cannot afford treatment or may stop taking the medicine when their symptoms aren't immediately alleviated.
DFID Minister, Mike Foster, said: "It is shocking that more children in developing countries die from diarrhea than AIDS, malaria and measles combined. Many of these deaths could easily be prevented by a simple vaccination and access to clean water, safer sanitation and more effective treatment. The UK is putting child and maternal deaths at the very heart of our efforts to get the Millennium Development Goals back on track."
The grant funds, £5,000,000 (approximately $7,616,033 US) from DFID given to iOWH will, in part support the development of an innovative new drug that aims to shorten the duration of episodes of diarrhea. The drug being developed is intended to speed up the recovery time by reducing the amount of fluid loss, thereby decreasing the likelihood of death as a result of diarrhea. This new drug will be used in conjunction with Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT) and will also enhance the adoption of ORT.
Flip for Good
Our sincere thanks to Flip Video's Flip for Good program. For every iOWH Flip video camera that is purchased, iOWH receives $10.
For more information visit: www.theflip.com/flipforgood
iOWH to Help Eliminate Neglected Disease in Bangladesh and Nepal
 iOWH is in the process of instituting a new program in Nepal and Bangladesh through a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This program will support the goal of the Governments of Nepal and Bangladesh to eliminate VL, which is part of the effort to achieve regional elimination of VL in South Asia (India, Nepal and Bangladesh) by 2015.
"This project aims to add Paromomycin IM Injection (PMIM), an affordable and safe therapy, to the current choice of treatments for VL in Bangladesh and Nepal. Helping patients in Bangladesh and Nepal represents the growth of our successful program with PMIM. We are very excited that we will be able to bring better health to those most in need," said Debra Vallner, VP Clinical Development, Leader, VL Program for iOWH.
PMIM is an anti-parasitic antibiotic with few side effects and is currently the least costly therapy for VL. The drug was developed by iOWH with support from partners including the Indian Council of Medical Research and in 2006, was registered with the Government of India following successful clinical trials there. In 2007 the drug was added to the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines.
Training programs and education materials will also be developed by iOWH in collaboration with local partners and will be provided to the governments of Bangladesh and Nepal to support their efforts in ensuring the successful introduction of PMIM into the VL Regional Elimination Programs.
 OneWorld Health Charm by Pandora
A stylish and generous way to show your support for iOWH - the iOWH charm is offered by Pandora. Your purchase will benefit efforts to treat and eliminate neglected diseases worldwide.
For more information visit: www.pandora-jewelry.com
91,000 Individuals Screened for Study
 We are pleased to announce the publication of two manuscripts on visceral leishmaniasis in India, recently published in Tropical Medicine and International Health (subscription required). The publications are based on field research led by Dr. Pradeep Das, Director of Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences (RMRI) and Rhonda Sarnoff, Dr.PH, Director of Monitoring, Evaluation and Field Research at iOWH. The research was conducted with a generous grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. These field studies are one element of the ongoing close collaboration between RMRI and iOWH. The articles present the findings of a population-based survey of the annual incidence of visceral leishmaniasis and its economic impact on rural households in one VL-endemic district in Bihar, India.
To read more, go to Tropical Medicine and International Health "The economic impact of visceral leishmaniasis on rural households in one endemic district of Bihar, India", Volume 15 Suppl. 2, pp 1–8 April 2010
"Annual incidence of visceral leishmaniasis in an endemic area of Bihar, India", Volume 15 Suppl. 2, pp 1–8 January 2010 Wiley Blackwell, Publisher
|
