TDR has launched a new research project that aims to tackle vector-borne diseases in the poorest populations of the world by exploring the complex interconnections between various social determinants of health.
Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) such as malaria and dengue are major contributors to the global disease burden. Populations of low-income countries are the most affected, notably in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and South America, where the favourable environmental conditions for vectors of diseases meets unfavourable socioeconomic and health system challenges.
There is an urgent need to investigate the interactions between the multiple social variables that shape health conditions among the poor, including the most vulnerable who are living in “poverty pockets.” Poverty pockets represent districts or areas in which people live far below average poverty levels.
In response, TDR has launched a new preliminary research project that will address some of the challenges in preventing and controlling VBDs linked to pockets of poverty. This project brings together several research approaches that TDR has been promoting in recent years: the multisectoral approach for the prevention and control of vector-borne diseases; the One Health approach to vector-borne diseases; and intersectional gender analysis in infectious disease research. The project will thus strengthen a multisectoral One Health approach by accounting for the social determinants of health and their context.
As an initial step, a landscape analysis is being conducted to obtain an overview of evidence on the links between poverty pockets and the prevention and control of VBDs. This analysis will also help identify knowledge gaps and research needs.
The research questions identified through the landscape analysis will guide research that will be conducted in vulnerable communities experiencing extreme poverty. A case study will involve a research team currently being supported by TDR in Latin America.
“This research connects the dots of our ongoing work in tackling infectious diseases that affect the world’s most vulnerable populations,” said TDR Director John Reeder. “This will contribute to TDR’s commitment in the fight against diseases of poverty, through an equitable, holistic and multisectoral approach.”
For more information, please contact Dr Bernadette Ramirez.