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Malaria Control Programmes

Malaria Control Programmes

Swaziland

A Malaria Control Programme has been in operation in Swaziland since the 1960's, falling within the Ministry of Health. The programme is coordinated from the town of Manzini, and targeted at the parasite and the vector, with indoor residual spraying occurring in all the structures in the low lying malaria areas, and the provision of medication (chloroquine as first-line treatment) for those who report ill to health facilities.  The medication is given presumptively at outpatient clinics where no definitive diagnostic facilities are available. Patients are admitted to hospitals because of the serious nature of their condition, after which a blood slide is taken to test for the presence of malaria parasites.  Individual case histories are recorded with the address being a town name. These case records are sent from the different public, private and mission hospitals to the Ministry of Health where they are recorded into the MIS.

Mozambique

Malaria is endemic in Mozambique and its control is the responsibility of the Department of Epidemiology and Endemic Diseases within the Ministry of Health. Outpatients are treated presumptively while those admitted to hospitals, due to the nature of their condition, are tested and treated accordingly. Malaria has been a notifiable disease in Mozambique since July 1998.

South Africa

Intervention methods include indoor residual spraying with insecticides to decrease the mosquito population, and the provision of medications to treat those who are confirmed to be carrying the parasite through both active and passive case detection methods.  All suspected cases of malaria are tested at both clinics and hospitals, with records of each case being sent to the regional offices where the data is recorded in the MIS.

Mpumalanga: A Malaria Control Programme has been in operation in Mpumalanga Province since 1948, with the head office being situated in Nelspruit. Most of the provinces malaria cases occur in the east and south-east, with case reporting occurring through both active and passive case detection methods.  For administrative purposes, the magisterial districts under malaria control measures have been divided into Localities and further divided into Sectors. This allows the display of malariametric data at very localised levels, highlighting high risk areas and assisting in the effective allocation of limited resources.

 KwaZulu-Natal: A Malaria Control Programme has been operational in northern KwaZulu-Natal since 1958, resulting in an extensive infrastructure of spray operators, vehicles, surveillance agents, office and laboratory staff.  The programme is co-ordinated by the Department of Health's regional office in the town of Jozini which is situated on the Lubombo Mountains above the malarious coastal plain to the east. For administrative purposes, the two northern-most districts of Ingwavuma and Ubombo were divided into named Areas, these being further subdivided into numbered Sections.  Each homestead in these districts has been allocated a number and the coordinate locations of the approximately 35 000 homesteads were captured using GPS receivers during 1994 and 1995. This allows the malaria case data to be displayed at homestead level or aggregated upwards to the various administrative levels.