URC

THREAD (3 of 3) As the saying goes, teamwork makes the dream work. URC’s dream – and that of our partners for the USAID TB-Free Luzon Activity in the Philippines – is to significantly reduce TB-associated illness and death in the Philippines. TB-Free Luzon is working closely with USAID, the Philippines Department of Health, the National TB Control Program, and other government offices, plus international and local organizations – including civil society organizations, youth, and patient groups. The activity and our partners will amplify the voices of marginalized people to improve community-level TB case finding and TB treatment completion rates, among other goals. TB-Free Luzon partner organizations include: ·TB People, which represents TB survivors to ensure the health system meets their needs; · ThinkWell – known for health financing in the Philippines – will support sustainability, universal health care rollout, and health system effectiveness; · Connected Women, which empowers women with opportunities in artificial intelligence (AI); · Eskwelabs, which strengthens the health system through increasing local AI and data-analytic skills to improve decision-making; · EPCON, which builds health system resilience through their international AI, machine learning, and predictive modeling experience and knowledge; and · Resource partners IQVIA and AC Health, who leverage research and private sector knowledge and will help prepare for the rollout of the new TB vaccine when approved. Learn more about TB-Free Luzon: https://bit.ly/3NFGPdg #EndTB

THREAD (2 of 3) USAID TB-Free Luzon, a new $37.3 million, five-year activity implemented by URC, is working with the National TB Program, local government units, and local organizations in eight of the country’s 18 regions to further reduce the burden of TB. The activity will empower local governments and organizations, encourage innovations and quality improvement, and scale up TB screening, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment. TB-Free Luzon’s strategies to propel the country toward achieving the 95-95-95+ global 2030 TB targets include: · Working with the Philippines Department of Health to support integrating TB services into primary health care using the country’s holistic approach. At the same time, the health system must address individual risk factors for TB; · Instilling a culture of continuous quality improvement with data-based decision-making to create replicable, innovative models to reduce the impact of TB, including the use of technology; and · Supporting local government units with the highest TB burden to ensure equitable geographic coverage and improved case finding. Learn more about TB-Free Luzon: https://bit.ly/3NFGPdg #QualityImprovement #EndTB

THREAD (1 of 3) URC is building on the success of the recently concluded USAID’s TB Platforms Activity in the Philippines with a new tuberculosis (TB) project working in eight regions: the TB-Free Luzon Activity. TB Platforms, implemented by URC in the “big three” (NCR, III, and IV-A) regions, achieved significant goals, such as increasing TB treatment coverage rates from 60% in 2017 to 101% in 2023 in these regions. The activity worked at the local government and community levels. The Philippines is making significant progress in the fight against TB. According to the WHO Global TB Report 2023, the country reached 435,890 TB case notifications in 2022, a 36% increase from 2021. But despite this progress, the Philippines still ranks fourth among the eight high TB-burden countries, contributing 7% of all global TB cases. Key TB challenges still facing the Philippines include finding undiagnosed TB cases, increasing overall TB and drug-resistant (DR) TB treatment coverage, increasing TB preventive treatment uptake, and improving TB treatment success rates – especially for people with DR-TB and people receiving treatment in the private sector. Learn more about TB Platforms: https://bit.ly/48gIw98 #EndTB

Going to #APHA2024? Check out the two #maternalhealth-related presentations being given Monday, Oct. 28 by Munkaila Mohammed – Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning/Knowledge Management for the Ghana Quality Services for Health (Q4H) Activity, funded by USAID and implemented by URC: · 10:30-10:45am – Reducing Stillbirths in Low-Resource Settings: A Quality Improvement Success Story from Ghana: https://bit.ly/4e4Ns3f · 11:30-11:45am – Enhancing Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Pregnancy (IPTp) with Sulphadoxine-Pyrimethamine Coverage in Ghana: A Quality Improvement Initiative: https://bit.ly/4e1I4y1 Kudos to Munkaila and the other Q4H and USAID staff who created these presentations! Learn more about URC’s work in #QualityImprovement: https://bit.ly/3YBfXRK

When Um Jude went into labor at Al Tutanji Hospital in Jordan, she imagined holding her baby for the first time. But antenatal bleeding complications soon turned her joy into fear. “I was so scared — worried about my baby and myself,” Jude said. But her care team was following the safe childbirth checklist, a life-saving guide introduced to Jordanian hospitals with support from the USAID Health Services Quality Accelerator Activity, implemented by URC. This step-by-step tool helps healthcare providers quickly recognize complications and take immediate action during labor. More than 500 healthcare providers in 20 hospitals across Jordan are using the checklist, which has been integrated into the patient electronic medical records system. Today, Um Jude holds her healthy baby, forever grateful for the care that saved both their lives. “Thanks to them, I have my baby safe in my arms.” The USAID Health Services Quality Accelerator Activity is working to accelerate and sustain improvements in Jordan's reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health outcomes by improving access to quality health services and strengthening leadership and governance capacity in the health sector. Learn more about the Activity: https://bit.ly/3WGIvr5 #RMNCH #QualityImprovement #SafePregnancy

Ensuring equitable access to quality health care – no matter a person’s economic status or location – is important for global health security in part because of the increasing threat posed by emerging and reemerging microbial diseases, said Dennis Carroll, URC Chief Scientist. This was one of the many points Carroll made during his presentation on Wednesday Oct. 16 at the 18th Joint Annual Scientific Conference (JASH) in Kampala, Uganda, an event focused on epidemic response and control in Sub-Saharan Africa. Carroll’s presentation also addressed the growing threats from pandemics generally, and how risk-based surveillance is key for preventing the next pandemic. He also highlighted how changing population and demographic dynamics across Africa this century will require rethinking current strategies for realizing a healthy Africa. Learn more about URC’s work in #globalhealthsecurity: https://bit.ly/47QJ1pE

The USAID Health Evaluation and Applied Research Development (HEARD) Project, implemented by URC, is seeking a Guatemala-based local partner organization to lead participatory activities for indigenous communities-focused communication and dissemination of results for the Guatemalan National Youth Survey. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4eOa5Kv

Last month we announced an exciting new chapter for URC (see our announcement here: https://lnkd.in/eexvbyaB).   Today, please join me in welcoming 𝐈𝐁𝐈'𝐬 David M. Wall to URC's executive team. We are thrilled to have David’s expertise helping to drive our global initiatives forward. With over 25 years of experience in international development, David has held senior roles with USAID, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank, earning accolades such as the USAID Meritorious Honor Award, and the Commanders Certificate of Appreciation from CENTCOM.    Welcome to you, and all, at IBI - A URC Company! I’m looking forward to working with you on our mission to create change in the world.

Approximately 1 in 5 Filipinos experience mental health issues, according to the Philippines Department of Health. However, community-based mental health in the Philippines still is in its infancy, with a key gap being the lack of evidence-based and community-based psychosocial programs. USAID RenewHealth – a five-year project implemented by URC – responded to this need by enhancing an existing resilience intervention program to create Katatagan Plus. This new program includes modules on managing distress tolerance, emotional regulation, cognitive reframing, interpersonal effectiveness, addictions, and problem-solving. Katatagan Plus addresses the demand for a program that can be delivered by non-specialists. It is intended especially for people 35 years old and younger who have higher mental health concerns. It can also be used for those experiencing difficult circumstances, such as chronic illness or adversity. Pilot-testing among college students showed it improved adaptive coping, wellbeing, and decreased depression symptoms of participants. Learn more about Katatagan Plus in this short video: https://bit.ly/4eGSTqi #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth USAID

Ukraine, at times, seems to be a country of contradictions. The necessity of living every-day lives while under constant threat of war and bombings perhaps is the most obvious example. I saw these billboards as speaking to this duality in an ironic way. There are large billboards covering the sides of two buildings next to each other a few blocks away from my hotel. The first is a dramatic acknowledgement of those defending Ukraine among flames, situated right next to an advertisement of the latest fashion. Reminders of war and the need to live normal lives in the midst of it all. #mentalhealth URC