| dc.description.abstract | The last case of indigenous malaria was reported
Sri Lanka in October 2012 and the country was
certified as “malaria-free” by the World Health
Organization in September 2016. This is truly a
great achievement for a tropical country which
had just overcome a major conflict within the
country in areas that were previously endemic for
malaria. Sri Lanka almost eliminated malaria in
1963 but the disease resurged in the late 1960s due
to many reasons including technical issues. Today,
it is almost 6 years since a case of indigenous
malaria was reported implying that we have the
capacity to prevent its re-introduction and reestablishment
in favourable conditions.
Eliminating malaria was no easy task. It required
political will, dedicated staff, committed
administrators, inter-sectoral and multiprofessional
collaboration and sustained financial
support. The main challenge was in the last
stages to keep the momentum for elimination in
the radar. A diminishing case load made clinicians
“forget” the disease; maintaining the technical
skills of Public Health Laboratory Technicians
was a challenge.
Mopping up of the last cases and eliminating
two foci is a classic example of good public
health practice. The Sri Lanka army immensely
contributed to this elimination effort in
collaborating with the Anti Malaria Campaign.
Post 2009, many army personnel were diagnosed
with vivax malaria. Some of these episodes were
relapses. The Sri Lanka Army ensured that all
soldiers were provided with radical cure for
vivax malaria which included a 14-day course of
primaquine. This was instrumental in the success
of the malaria elimination programme.
Even today, the armed forces collaborate with
the Anti Malaria Campaign to prevent the
re-introduction of malaria to Sri Lanka. This
collaboration will need to continue for many
years to come until eradication of malaria. | en_US |
