Throughout nearly all of human history, most people died from causes for which pathogens were to blame. But today, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)—illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and chronic lung disease—are responsible for more human deaths than all other causes combined. NCDs are also an overlooked cause of poverty, they stifle economic development in countries where they’re common, and their prevalence is increasing globally.
According to the World Health Organization, NCDs are now responsible for 68 percent of deaths worldwide, and cumulative economic losses due to NCDs could reach $7 trillion by 2025.
Recognizing how essential it is that actors from all sectors and from multiple areas of the health system work together to reverse this trend, Eli Lilly and Company is proud to support the September issue of Health Affairs.
The Power Of Partnership
As a global biopharmaceutical company, Lilly is committed to finding new answers to the challenges of NCDs, not only through our medicines, but also through innovative partnerships.
Through the Lilly NCD Partnership, we are collaborating with leading health organizations in Brazil, India, Mexico, and South Africa to pilot new ways of combating diabetes for people living in low-income communities. Our collective goal is to find sustainable solutions that can be adopted, replicated, and scaled to make life better for more people around the world.
For example, as part of the Lilly NCD Partnership, we are partnering with Project HOPE in India and South Africa. Our work in South Africa is highlighted in the publisher’s letter in the September issue of Health Affairs. It is an excellent example of how partnership can harness and focus the capabilities and skills of many organizations to combat even the most stubborn challenges.
Collaborations such as this are absolutely critical given the complexities of diabetes, a rapidly escalating health challenge that many countries are presently ill-equipped to face. Currently, almost 300 million people with diabetes live in low- and middle-income countries, and that number is expected to dramatically increase to about 455 million, according to projections from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF).
Capacity-Building In Mexico
Let me offer another example, this time in Mexico, where, according to the IDF, the number of people living with diabetes is expected to increase from 9 million in 2013 to nearly 16 million by 2035.
To address this looming epidemic, the Government of Mexico is implementing the country’s first national strategy against obesity and diabetes. One of the main barriers to improving access to diabetes prevention and care is the fact that diabetes has historically been treated by medical specialists in private and public tertiary clinics, while more than half the population accesses health services through primary care clinics in the public sector. Health workers in these primary care clinics need more capacity to help patients prevent and manage diabetes and to treat comorbidities.
The not-for-profit Carlos Slim Foundation (CSF) has developed a model for helping health workers in primary clinics to do just this, through an innovative, comprehensive approach to addressing NCDs. This so-called Casalud model involves patient screenings to prevent and diagnose diabetes and other NCDs using a device that measures a range of vital signs, including glucose levels.
In addition to the technology, health workers receive an integrated information system with clinical guidelines, checklists, health calculators, and even government regulations. An online system is used to continuously monitor the health supply chain to prevent stock outs of necessary medicines and other commodities. And health workers receive continuing medical education to bolster their knowledge and skills to prevent, treat, and manage diabetes and other NCDs.
The Government of Mexico has adopted CSF’s Casalud model as part of its national strategy against obesity and diabetes. Lilly has supported CSF’s efforts by evaluating the implementation of the model and patient outcomes, and we are now working to develop and test tools that will help empower patients and increase the detection of diabetes.
The development, adoption, evaluation, and scale up of the Casalud model is a prime example of partnership between the public, not-for-profit, and private sectors to reduce the burden of NCDs.
Looking Ahead
Fortunately, global efforts against NCDs are poised to accelerate. When member states convene at next month’s United Nations (UN) General Assembly, they plan to adopt new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs acknowledge that noncommunicable diseases are heavily impacting low- and middle-income countries.
Upon their adoption next month, UN member states will commit to substantially reduce morbidity and mortality from NCDs by 2030 through increased prevention and treatment and mitigating risk factors such as alcohol abuse. This represents the first time that the global development agenda will take direct aim at reducing the burden of NCDs.
To meet this goal, we need to further mobilize the respective strengths of the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors by forging effective partnerships and delivering solutions tailored to local health care systems and the needs of people impacted by NCDs.
These efforts must be driven by sound evidence. This means that we need increased research not only into the basic science and clinical aspects of NCDs, but also into the effectiveness of policies and programs through which health services are delivered to populations in need.
With articles presenting new data on the incidence of NCDs, the economics and financing of NCD solutions and community interventions, this month’s issue of Health Affairs provides invaluable new insights for all of us working to turn the tide against NCDs.
No comments:
Post a Comment