Thanks to herculean efforts by mainstream advocates such as Lance Laifer and his many colleagues, the generation X and post X are becoming much more aware of a deadly disease that takes the lives of over one million adults and children every year. What makes this infectious disease particularly frustrating is that experts, clinicians, and field workers agree that many of these deaths are preventable and unnecessary.However as awareness is increased and monies are raised to eradicate malaria deaths in resource poor settings, I choose to honor my colleague Dr. Paul Ambrose, whose death on 9/11/2001 left the public health community a gaping hole and the world without one of its brightest stars. To emulate my colleague Paul’s exceptional mind and inquisitive nature I pose some questions for us to ponder on the World Malaria day:
- Why has a disease that kills over one million persons a year been neglected? What incentives have been lacking and how can we structurally change these incentives?
- Can old technologies such as DDT be re-formulated to maintain their effectiveness to kill malaria infected mosquitoes while avoiding harmful side effects on humans?
- Is money the only missing ingredient to eradicate the disease? What are the other issues such as political, social, and bureaucratic that have led to problems in the field?
- What existing versus emerging technologies are most cost effective for prevention versus treatment; bed nets, vaccines, etc.
- Should donors focus on the local production of bed nets versus importing foreign made bed nets to sustain and build local industry?
- What do the local African Leaders have to say about existing efforts to date for malaria control? What have the successes been, where have we failed, how do we move forward? Can we invite these leaders to the US and speak to us about the challenges they face?
- How can new technologies such as web casts and twitter stimulate direct dialogue with field workers to help them be more effective through existing efforts?
- What strategies can we develop specific to discovery, development, health delivery, and primary prevention that complement other existing priority global health problems without creating health worker brain drain and maximize allocation of scarce human and financial recourses.
As a global community we can work together to achieve greatness. By asking the difficult questions we can provide effective solutions to eradicate this dreaded disease while also being thoughtful about other existing problems in global health.
Paul, thank you. Your shining light and inquisitive mind continue to spur us to new heights.
