Maiden MP visit achieves great RESULTS!

Rachel Achterstraat is our ACTION Project Coordinator and recently went on her first Member of Parliament meeting in Canberra last Friday with RESULTS National Manager Maree Nutt. She wrote about her experience:

Today, I attended my first ever MP visit. In many ways this was my 'baptism by fire' because as it happens, my local Federal Member (of Warringah) is none other than Tony Abbott, Leader of the Opposition.

RESULTS National Manager Maree Nutt and I met with Mr. Abbott to discuss the premature closure of medical clinics in the Torres Strait Islands (TSI), which have been treating Papua New Guineans with tuberculosis (TB) for the past six years.

A recent decision made by the Australian Government to cut funding for these clinics has led to their forced closure.

The implications of this decision are far-reaching.

PNG patients who had previously received treatment through the TSI clinics will now be at high risk of developing Multi-Drug Resistant TB (a more vicious strain of the virus) and Australian citizens will be exposed to a significantly increased risk of cross-border transmission.

The Government has proposed that these funds should be diverted away from these life-saving clinics and funneled into a more broader health systems strentgthening approach to tackle the high rates of TB in PNG.

Whilst RESULTS is pleased that the Australian Government will be investing in health service delivery for our nearest neighbor, it is too early to tell if the proposed strategy will be of any effect.

It is also estimated that building the capacity of the PNG health system to cope with the national TB burden will take more than a decade, resulting in at least ten years of increased risk to a highly infectious and often fatal disease.

Having served previously as the Minister for Health and the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Mr. Abbott took interest in the issue. He was particularly concerned by the potential for TB to spread throughout the Australian Indigenous population in Northern Australia, and also the potential impact of increased TB transmission in a country with a high HIV/AIDS burden, such as PNG.

Mr. Abbott agreed that a short term and longer term strategy is required to address this issue and was dismayed at the shortsightedness of current plans to close the clinics.

Mr. Abbott suggested that he would write a Letter to Prime Minister Julia Gillard, outlining RESULTS recommendations and asking the Government to resume funding for the TSI Clinics. Mr. Abbott also suggested that his Minister for Indigenous Health could ask a Question of Notice to the Parliament at Question Time.

Despite first-time nerves and a few tongue-ties, I think my first MP visit was a success.

Having the ever-sharp Maree along with me was a huge support.

I believe we left with the promise of a concrete action from Mr. Abbott and the beginnings of an open dialogue with his team.

From Left to Right: National Manager Maree Nutt, ACTION Project Manager
Rachel Achterstraat, and Federal Leader of the Opposition Tony Abbott.

RESULTS urges Federal Govt. to resume funding TB clinics in Torres Strait

RESULTS International (Australia) is urging the Federal Government to resume funding for medical clinics in the Torres Strait Islands.

Without these clinics Papua New Guinea nationals will not receive critical care for tuberculosis (TB) and will likely increase the chances of this highly-infectious disease spreading within Australia.

In the past, these life-saving clinics have received funding from the Commonwealth and Queensland State Governments, however the Federal Government’s decision to withdraw funding for these services means that the closure of the clinics is imminent.

The Commonwealth has stated that it would instead send $43 million in AusAID funding to PNG-based health services.

“Whilst the increase in aid funding to improve health services for TB in Papua New Guinea is welcome, lasting sustainable improvements will take years to achieve.

“This means in the short term, keeping TB clinics open in the Torres Strait is imperative.” RESULTS International (Australia) National Manager Maree Nutt today said.

According to the World Health Organisation, TB is a disease of poverty affecting mostly young adults, and in 2009 1.7 million people died from the airborne contagion worldwide.

There is also a recorded death every two hours in PNG from TB, according to the National Department of Health. 


“Let us not forget that tuberculosis is an airborne disease so it is a very real threat, not only to Torres Strait Islanders, but to Australians as well,” Ms Nutt added.

Coalition MPs such as Warren Entsch and Andrew Laming have also been outspoken on the issue, forecasting disastrous outcomes if Multi-Drug Resistant TB patients from PNG worked their way south, risking increased transmission to Australian citizens.

TAKE ACTION TODAY: Write a letter-to-the-editor to your local newspaper imploring the Federal Government to resume funding for medical clinics in the Torres Strait Islands.

RESULTS joins the call to end polio

RESULTS, in partnership with the Global Poverty Project, is today calling for world leaders to secure resources for the US$590 million funding gap required to eradicate polio.

Full funding for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative would not only provide vaccines for hundreds of millions of the world's poorest children and support health workers to protect future generations from this debilitating disease.

The Weapon
RESULTS is committed to increasing political support and resources at the global level to improve the delivery of new and basic vaccines in countries with a high burden of vaccine-preventable deaths.

The protection that vaccines give against easily preventable diseases is often the difference between life and death. Vaccines are one of the most efficient, successful and cost-effective tools for saving children’s lives and as a key element of healthcare, immunization is also the right of every child.

The Background
Poliomyelitis (Polio) is a highly infectious viral disease that attacks the nervous system. In the 1950-60s, polio epidemics swept through Australia, America and Europe, causing fear and panic in communities around the world. Families barricaded themselves in their homes in an attempt to protect vulnerable children against the rapid spread of this potentially fatal disease.

Today, vaccination programs ensure that polio epidemics are a distant memory for most of the world. In fact, the number of polio cases reported annually has decreased by over 99 per cent – from 350,000 in 1988 to 1,606 cases in 2009.

However, as is usually the case, this devastating disease does continue to threaten children in our world’s poorest communities.

The Opportunity

In 1998, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) began spearheading an effort to support country governments to immunize every child against polio until transmission stops and the world is polio-free.

Since the GPEI’s momentous launch, nearly five million children, who otherwise would have been paralyzed and incapacitated by polio, are walking, able and symptoms-free. Right now, the total eradication of this vicious disease is within reach.

The Obstacle

In the final phase of its critical work to rid the world of Polio, GPEI is constrained by a funding gap of $590 million. We are asking Governments to commit to finish the job on polio eradication so its debilitating effects are never felt again, anywhere in the world.

A $50 million contribution from Australia – the announcement of which could coincide with World Polio Day and the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting being held in Perth in October – would be a huge step towards bridging this funding gap.

The Action

You can take action in the fight against polio by signing a petition that calls on world leaders to ensure full funding is secured for the critical work of the GPEI. Full funding for 2012-13 will provide vaccines for hundreds of millions of the world’s poorest children and support health workers to protect future generations from this debilitating disease.

For more information, and to join the call to eradicate the second human disease in history, go to: http://www.theendofpolio.com/home/

An act of injustice, not charity

The Global Poverty Project has recently begun The End of Polio Campaign to rid the world of a disease which has disabled millions and pulled individuals further into poverty. Over the past 30 years the threat of polio has been reduced by 99 per cent over the past 30 years - it's end is in sight.

Sandra Opoku, from the Global Poverty Project, agrees: 

THE Australian government recently announced increases in funding for immunisation, and with the recent momentum around the eradication of polio, we should reflect on the facts of the global importance and impact of immunisation coverage.

It is in our best interest to address global public health issues, and it is also affordable for us to do so. Health is an essential human right and is recognised as a global public good by all United Nations-member states.

The gap in immunisation coverage rates between developed and developing countries is growing as most developing countries cannot afford the newer and more expensive vaccines that are being introduced. Furthermore, support for vaccines from developed countries has actually fallen over the last few decades.

Traditionally the Expanded Programme for Immunisation (EPI) is a national responsibility, but most developing countries actually rely on external assistance for new vaccine implementation and for scaling up existing programmes. For developing countries national decision-making around public health involves opportunity costs, with limited resources and competing priorities. Without guaranteed sustainable funding for the long term most countries, within sub-Saharan Africa in particular, would not choose to implement new vaccines into the EPI.

Much of the funding for vaccine distribution relies on international donors and multilateral institutions. The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) currently provides the bulk of sustainable resources for routine immunization. GAVI funding has allowed many developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, to reach important targets of access, utilization, quality, safety, and equity.

Despite these huge gains in terms of lives saved, many challenges to immunisation coverage still remain today. Global commitment for vaccines has not been sustained. Many deaths still occur today from measles, tetanus, and polio even though vaccines for these diseases were integrated into the EPI decades ago.

Roughly 30 per cent of children globally are not being reached by the EPI and over 70 per cent of deaths in children under-five are still caused by vaccine preventable diseases.

Importantly, if vaccines are not successfully delivered to target populations with necessary coverage rates then the impact of the vaccine, cost-effectiveness of the intervention and public health benefits are minimised.

Currently priorities do not accurately reflect disease burden or cost-effectiveness of known interventions. The World Bank has estimated that developing countries account for over 90 per cent of the global disease burden, yet only around 20 per cent of global income, and 10 per cent of global health expenditure. To demonstrate global priorities, only 10 per cent of medical research is focused on diseases that are responsible for 90 per cent of the global disease burden.

The economic, practical, and moral incentives for developed countries to support vaccine distribution are high. Vaccines are the most effective public health tool available. 

The Copenhagen Consensus of 2008 listed the EPI as the fourth major solution to the world’s greatest challenges.

Furthermore, whilst it might sound crude, childhood vaccination saves the most lives per dollar invested than any other public health tool. Both the Diphtheria Tetanus and Pertussis, and the measles vaccine cost less than US$50 per life saved.

In fact the estimated benefits of implementing known and effective interventions that would address all the major diseases would actually be 7-30 times the cost.

Combine all these facts and it seems clear that the support for increased immunisation in developing countries should be a major global priority. Health is an essential human right. Developing countries will need increased support in order to gain the potential global benefits of immunisation. Effective and affordable interventions already exist and it makes sense to implement the EPI at high coverage rates in all regions, specifically those with high disease burdens.

It might also be the ultimate answer to eradicating ancient and costly diseases.

This is an act of justice.

Tackling poverty is about more than money

The Independent Review of Australia's Aid Program was recently released this week.
RESULTS International (Australia) will soon put out a media release on the review. 

James Ensor, Oxfam Australia's director of public policy, believes that Australian aid needs to look at how it can make sure poor people have a greater role in their development. He recently wrote in the National Times:

Critically, the government's aid review also highlights the importance of people – rather than countries – as the focus of Australian aid. The welcome mandate for a re-energised Australian aid program is that the fundamental purpose of aid is to help people overcome poverty.

Australian aid needs to look at how it can make sure poor people have a greater role in their own development. This means giving them a chance to speak out with their own governments, and through local and national parliaments. Encouragingly, the government's response to the aid review acknowledges this and could provide a platform for poor communities and civil society in developing countries to more effectively have a say in decisions affecting them.

Increasing the accountability and transparency of Australian aid is another welcome feature of the aid review. A new Transparency Charter will enable the Australian public to have greater access to information about the effectiveness of our aid program, and a raft of measures designed to demonstrate the results of the aid program to Australian taxpayers will be implemented. In pursuing this agenda in Australia, we must not forget the importance of our aid program also being accountable to the people we are delivering aid to. This means providing accessible, meaningful information about the aid program to the people who stand to benefit from it.

Do you agree with Mr Ensor and the direction Australian aid is currently heading?
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