The Role of Child Health Days in the Attainment of Global Deworming Coverage Targets among Preschool-Age Children

PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2015 Nov 6;9(11):e0004206. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004206. eCollection 2015 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Global deworming programs aim to reach 75% of at-risk preschool-age children (pre-SAC) by 2020. The 2013 global pre-SAC deworming coverage initially published by the World Health Organization (WHO) was 23.9%, but this estimate inadequately captured deworming delivered through Child Health Day (CHD) platforms.

Objective: To update global and regional coverage estimates of pre-SAC deworming in 2013 by supplementing data from the WHO Preventive Chemotherapy and Transmission Control (PCT) databank with national CHD data.

Methods: UNICEF country offices (n = 82) were mailed a questionnaire in July 2014 to report on official national biannual CHD deworming coverage as part of the global vitamin A supplementation coverage reporting mechanism. Coverage data obtained were validated and considered for inclusion in the PCT databank in a collaboration between UNICEF and WHO. Descriptive statistical analyses were conducted to update the number of pre-SAC reached and the number of treatments delivered.

Results: Of the 47 countries that responded to the UNICEF pre-SAC deworming questionnaire, 73 data points from 39 countries were considered for inclusion into the WHO PCT databank. Of these, 21 new data points were from 12 countries were newly integrated into the WHO database. With this integration, deworming coverage among pre-SAC increased to 49.1%, representing an increase in the number of children reached and treatments administered from 63.7 million to 130.7 million and 94.7 million to 234.8 million, respectively. The updated databank comprised 98 mass deworming activities conducted in 55 countries, in which 80.4% of the global pre-SAC population requiring deworming reside. In all, 57 countries requiring deworming were not yet represented in the database.

Conclusions: With the inclusion of CHD data, global deworming programs are on track to achieving global pre-SAC coverage targets. However, further efforts are needed to improve pre-SAC coverage reporting as well as to sustain and expand deworming delivery through CHDs and other platforms.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anthelmintics / therapeutic use*
  • Child, Preschool
  • Global Health
  • Health Services Research
  • Helminthiasis / drug therapy*
  • Helminthiasis / epidemiology*
  • Helminthiasis / prevention & control
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / drug therapy*
  • Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / epidemiology*
  • Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / prevention & control
  • Research Design / standards
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • World Health Organization

Substances

  • Anthelmintics

Supplementary concepts

  • Intestinal helminthiasis

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, http://www.gatesfoundation.org/ (OPP1118856) and the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, http://www.international.gc.ca/international/index.aspx?lang=eng (M013618-003). All authors received the funding and the funding was used for salary support. RK and ND are UNICEF staff members. RK is a paid consultant in the Nutrition Section at UNICEF headquarters. The opinions and statements in this article are those of the author and may not reflect official UNICEF policies. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript