Infection of in Sand Flies at Different Microhabitats of a Kala-Azar Endemic Village in Eastern Sudan.

A study was carried out to compare the infection rates of in sandflies at different microhabitats of a VL endemic village in Gedarif state, Sudan. DNA extracts of 1078 sand fly females sampled by CDC light traps from indoor, outdoor, peri-domestic, and sylvatic sites, in three transmission seasons, March-June 2016-18, in Helat-Belo village, were subjected to independent PCR amplifications targeting kDNA and the gene followed by ITS1 region sequencing. kDNA was detected in 1.

Preparations for sustainability and transition from Global Fund support in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Background: HIV, tuberculosis and malaria (HTM) services receive financial support from the Global Fund and need to plan for sustainability and transition from external funding.

Aim: To recommend actions for addressing key sustainability and transition issues in 15 countries receiving Global Fund grants in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean (EMR) Region.

Methods: We reviewed documents, interviewed key informants, and conducted case studies in Sudan and Tunisia to highlight key considerations for sustainability and transition from Global Fund that is tailored to the EMR and the health system building blocks.

Impact on core values of family medicine from a 2-year Master's programme in Gezira, Sudan: observational study.

Background: Training of family physicians should include not only clinical and procedural skills, but also core values as comprehensive care, continuity of care, leadership and patient-centeredness. The Gezira Family Medicine Project (GFMP) is a 2 years Master's programme in family medicine in Sudan. We assessed the impact of GFMP on the candidates' adherence to some core values of family medicine.

Needs assessment to strengthen capacity in water and sanitation research in Africa: experiences of the African SNOWS consortium.

Background: Despite its contribution to global disease burden, diarrhoeal disease is still a relatively neglected area for research funding, especially in low-income country settings. The SNOWS consortium (Scientists Networked for Outcomes from Water and Sanitation) is funded by the Wellcome Trust under an initiative to build the necessary research skills in Africa. This paper focuses on the research training needs of the consortium as identified during the first three years of the project.

Scaling up family medicine training in Gezira, Sudan - a 2-year in-service master programme using modern information and communication technology: a survey study.

Background: In 2010 the Gezira Family Medicine Project (GFMP) was initiated in Gezira state, Sudan, designed as an in-service training model. The project is a collaboration project between the University of Gezira, which aims to provide a 2-year master's programme in family medicine for practicing doctors, and the Ministry of Health, which facilitates service provision and funds the training programme. This paper presents the programme, the teaching environment, and the first batch of candidates enrolled.

Integrated bio-behavioural HIV surveillance surveys among female sex workers in Sudan, 2011-2012.

Objectives: To assess HIV and syphilis prevalence, HIV-related behaviours and testing for HIV in female sex workers (FSW) in Sudan.

Design: Bio-behavioural surveys using respondent-driven sampling were carried out among FSW in the capital cities of 14 states in Sudan in 2011-2012. HIV and syphilis testing was done by rapid tests.

Concomitant malaria among visceral leishmaniasis in-patients from Gedarif and Sennar States, Sudan: a retrospective case-control study.

Background: In areas where visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and malaria are co-endemic, co-infections are common. Clinical implications range from potential diagnostic delay to increased disease-related morbidity, as compared to VL patients. Nevertheless, public awareness of the disease remains limited.

A study of the use and impacts of LifeStraw in a settlement camp in southern Gezira, Sudan.

This paper reports a study of the LifeStraw in El-Masraf camp within Gezira State, Sudan. A total of 647 eligible subjects participated in the study. Two week incidence of diarrhoeal rates were estimated by a community survey some four months before and again four months after provision of the LifeStraw.