Thailand & the fight against malaria

Good morning everyone,

Today I am writing you from Thailand, the second stop on our trip.

Thailand is a beautiful country to visit but before you jump on a plane, you have to do some research. When we were planning our trip, they told us we didn’t have to get vaccinated against malaria because the risk isn’t that high. But that wasn’t always the case. And today, malaria still isn’t completely beaten. If malaria is discovered late and it cannot be treated, people will die. That used to be often the case but today, that’s much less likely to happen, with 800 malaria posts and clinics and universal free treatment.

But not everybody goes to the clinic. Some people buy medication on the black market if they think they have malaria and others just go home. The others come and go unobserved, taking the parasites with them. Luckily, there are some bosses who take his workers to the clinic when they are sick, but that's not the case everywhere.

If Thailand is going to contain or eliminate malaria, they must have more Global Fund money. The problem is the whole world's problem. The world has to help; they cannot do it by themselves. But the world has a doubtful disease elimination record. Of seven attempted eradication programmes, only one, smallpox, has ever succeeded.

A map can help the decision-makers decide what is happening. The university's Biophics department developed this system with the help of a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant. If the map is getting redder, they know they should do something.

An important factor in the fight against malaria is to make people aware of the dangers this disease.

All the soldiers used to have malaria, but now, few soldiers get malaria, an improvement thanks to more clinics and better education. However, at the checkpoint where fruit farm labourers and hundreds of others come to renew their border passes each week, Cambodian migrant workers may not be as knowledgeable and could be at risk. It's very important for the border guards to play a role in containment. It can be very difficult to get the workers tested, partly due to the language barrier, but if they come to a checkpoint with soldiers they are afraid that they will not get a visa, so then they generally agree.

Thailand still has a long way to go; I will certainly support a charity that fights against malaria.

Greetings, Laura

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/journalismcompetition/drive-to-beat-malaria-thailand?INTCMP=SRCH