Haiti has made remarkable progress against lymphatic filariasis (LF), a disfiguring and stigmatizing neglected tropical disease (NTD), despite facing many challenges. A recently published PLOS NTDs editorial highlights the perseverance and support displayed by the Haitian government and development partners, resulting in scaled-up mass drug administration (MDA) across the country, integrated programs with soil-transmitted helminths (also known as intestinal worms) and increased morbidity management. With these successes, the Haitian effort to eliminate LF can certainly be a model for other countries.

The Haitian Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP) established the National Program to Eliminate LF (NPELF) in 2000 to stop LF transmission and reduce the suffering of infected people. Key partners include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), CBM, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Abbott Foundation, PepsiCo, Frank Eck Family Foundation and others.

In the first MDA, conducted in Léogâne in 2000, the NPELF and local partners trained community leaders and health volunteers on medicine distribution techniques and educated them about LF treatment, transmission and prevention. Social mobilization was another integral component, spreading messages by banners, posters, radio and megaphones to increase the number of people participating in MDA.

Efforts then focused on scaling up the program to reach all people in need. However, over the course of many years, natural disasters and political and social unrest challenged expansion of the LF program. Just some examples include random acts of violence, devastating hurricanes and flooding, an earthquake and a vicious cholera outbreak.

Yet, increased advocacy, new funding and reinvigorated planning provided the necessary boosts to scale up and achieve results. One of the meetings that jumpstarted new progress was organized by the Global Network, Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and IDB. As the PLOS NTDs paper explains, “The partners affirmed their support for NTD control and elimination of LF, and the donor community responded. With new funding for MDA in Port-au-Prince from CDC and others, Haiti was finally poised for the first time to achieve full coverage of the entire country with MDA, with a population in excess of 10 million.”

Now, Haiti has achieved full national coverage, and it must strive for interrupted LF transmission. With strong partnerships and continued political commitment, this milestone is in Haiti’s grasp.

To read the full paper, “Haiti National Program for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis — A Model of Success in the Face of Adversity,” click here.