The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced that they
would like to end the misery caused by neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) from
around the world by the year 2020. These diseases vary from lymphatic
filariasis, binging trachoma, leprosy, and fascioliasis to name to few. The WHO
is aware that it is going to take full cooperation from everyone to be able to
pull off such a complex target and how difficult it is going to be to keep
control of disease that are spread out from all over. WHO was able to combine
forces with the Global Pharmaceutical Industry to fight NTDs by donating 14
billion treatments for the span of 10 years to eliminate an international
burden represented at 90%.
I believe that this is obviously a social problem because these
are diseases that could affect everyone, but when the WHO is able to finally
come up with the vaccines and make them available no one will be able to afford
it. It takes a lot of research to develop these vaccines and so to able to make
some type of profit from it, the cost is going to be high, not allowing the
underdeveloped countries who really are at a high risk of the NTDs to receive the
care they need. Not to mention that it also relies of environmental
improvements, and effective health policies—a lot goes into this plan and must
be thought through fully before the World Health Organization thinks everyone
should jump on board with their idea (especially in the next 8 years) and
expect it to actually work. This is also a difficult process because these NTDs
are constantly being overshadowed by more common diseases such as HIV, malaria,
and tuberculosis (TB) by the community; there needs to be focus on all
dangerous diseases. Even with the donations WHO have received thus far, it’s
going to take a full, conscious global effort for everyone to even see some possible
change.
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