Media Advisory

On 5th Annual Malaria Day in the Americas, PAHO Will Honor Malaria Champions of the Americas
WHAT:          A Malaria Day in the Americas forum on “The Path to Sustained Impact and Elimination” and presentation of the 2011 Malaria Champions of the Americas
WHEN:         Tuesday, 8 November 2011, 1:30 – 5:00 p.m.

WHERE:       Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) HQ, Room B
                      525 23rd St. NW, Washington, DC (Corner 23rd St. & Virginia Ave)

WHO:           Organized by the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), in coordination with the Pan American Health and Education Foundation (PAHEF) and the George Washington University Center for Global Health (CGH). Speakers include:

Dr. Socorro Gross, Assistant Director, PAHO
Dr. Javier Uribe, Advisor on Health Systems and Services, PAHO/Guyana
Dr. Frederico Guanais, Senior Health Specialist, Social Protection and Health Division, Inter-American Development Bank
Dr. Marthelise Eersel, Health Director, Ministry of Health of Suriname
Dr. Trenton K. Ruebush, II, Senior Malaria Advisor, Bureau for Global Health, USAID
Dr. Marcos Espinal, Manager, Health Surveillance and Disease Prevention and Control
Dr. Jon Andrus, Deputy Director, PAHO
The three winners of the 2011 Malaria Champions of the Americas contest will be honored:
§  The State of Acre Malaria Control Program, Brazil
§  The Integrated Management of Malaria in Wampusirpi program, Department of Gracias a Dios, Honduras
§  The Community Surveillance of Malaria through Sentinel Sites program, Nicaragua
Video profiles of each winner will be presented during the event.
CONTEXT:   Each year some 250 million people around the world suffer from malaria, and about 1 million die from the disease. In the Americas, malaria cases declined 54 percent and malaria deaths declined 68 percent between 2000 and 2009. Eighteen of the 21 endemic countries in the Americas have experienced declines, while three have seen increases in malaria cases. The forum will allow discussion among health authorities and experts, students, academicians, partners, and the general public focusing on two areas:

       *   Decentralization and integration of malaria programs in health systems
       *   Elimination of malaria: possibilities and perspectives in the countries of the Americas.

The Malaria Champions of the Americas Award is an initiative of PAHO/WHO, PAHEF, and CGH that seeks to identify, celebrate, and provide avenues to emulate best practices and success stories in malaria prevention and control.

LINKS:
Malaria Champions of the Americas 2011 finalists:
http://new.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5980&Itemid=3835&lang=en

PAHO malaria portal: www.paho.org/malaria<http://www.paho.org/malaria>

To participate in the forum via Elluminate, please visit:
(English) www.paho.org/virtual/CommunicableDiseases<http://www.paho.org/virtual/CommunicableDiseases>
(Español) www.paho.org/virtual/EnfermedadesTransmisibles<http://www.paho.org/virtual/EnfermedadesTransmisibles>


PAN AMERICAN HEALTH AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION                  www.pahef.org
PAN AMERICAN HEALTH ORGANIZATION                                                 www.paho.org
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION                                                                 www.who.int