PATH

In Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania, and Zambia, PATH Program Advisor Dr. Sadaf Khan is exploring how the maternal #RSV vaccine can be incorporated into routine immunization programs. Working closely with communities and national health systems, the study aims to address the practical challenges of rolling out the vaccine in underserved areas. The vaccine’s impact could be transformative—not just for infant survival but for the overall well-being of families. “When these children, especially in lower-income countries, are hospitalized, there’s a huge financial burden accrued onto the family,” says Dr. Shabir Madhi, director of the Wits VIDA Research Unit and co-director of the African Leadership Initiative for Vaccinology Expertise (Wits Alive). Read more in Time Inc.: https://bit.ly/4eDmP60 #VaccinesWork #MaternalHealth #MNCH Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

What a year it’s been… Together with our incredible teams and partners, we’ve taken on some of the world’s toughest health challenges and made meaningful progress. In 2024, we celebrated 20 years of malaria work in Zambia, where a rapid reporting system and a network of 25,000 trained health workers have helped cut malaria cases and deaths. We also launched PATHs Women’s Health Initiative to address the unique health needs of women and girls globally. See more of our highlights from the year - stories of innovation, collaboration, and hope from around the world: https://lnkd.in/ejDhA5Mg None of this would have been possible without our partners who share our commitment to health equity. Thank you. 🧡 Here’s to even greater impact in 2025—and continuing to find joy in the journey along the way...

#AI made headlines throughout 2024 as the technology became more accessible and more integrated into everyday tasks. But what does the explosion of AI tools mean for the health care sector? At #GDHF2024, we asked some of our colleagues and partners to reflect on how AI is already changing health care delivery on the African continent—and what the global health community can do in the coming year to help ensure AI-enabled tools are safe, effective, and accessible for African health care settings. What key actions do you think are needed to accelerate the effective use of #AI4Health in 2025? Digital health innovators from PATH, Audere, Medtronic LABS, mymdoc, Kenya Paediatric Research Consortium - Keprecon, World Health Organization, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation share their insights ⏬ Dino Rech Anne Stake Wilkister Musau Nneka Mobisson Ambrose Agweyu Alain Labrique Melissa Miles Digital Square at PATH

No single intervention will enable us to win the war against malaria. Integrated deployment of these three tools - where Product Development Partnerships (PDPs) PATH, IVCC (Innovative Vector Control Consortium) and Medicines for Malaria Venture have served catalytic roles in development and deployment - offers the best hope.

As the year comes to a close, I am incredibly proud of the work my colleagues across PATH have done to improve health equity around the world. I am also very grateful to have had the opportunity to spend two weeks in Kenya, seeing that work up close and reconnecting with my colleagues on our advocacy and policy team. First, Jenny Blair, Fata Acquoi, M.A., Kate Sotos, Ameenah Habib, Ruth Wanjala, Rachel Ndirangu, and I traveled with colleagues based in Kisumu to see US government-funded projects in Homabay and Kisumu. The impact of these programs has been profound, from improving childhood immunization rates and reducing child deaths to protecting girls and young women from the triple threat (HIV, teen pregnancy, and gender-based violence). US government investments in this work are important as they lead to healthier, more stable communities and lift up entire nations. As a long-time advocate for vaccines and other health innovations, seeing them reach the final mile was so rewarding. In one vaccine storage room, we saw five different technologies PATH has advanced over the years, including the new malaria vaccine, which we later witnessed children receiving at a clinic. It was also inspiring to hear the ingenuity local health officials are employing to reach zero-dose and under-immunized children in fishing communities around Lake Victoria. Then, we spent a week in Nairobi with our advocacy and policy team, many of whom were meeting for the first time or reconnecting after many years. We celebrated our successes and failures—and the lessons that come with them—and planned for the future. Given all the challenges the world faces, advocacy is more important than ever, and I am excited for the work we have ahead of us in 2025. Wishing you all a happy holiday season and a healthy new year! Bernard Aryeetey Heather Ignatius Rosemarie Muganda-Onyando Carolyne Njuguna Wanjiku Manguyu Melissa Wanda Kirowo Esther Nasikye Claire Nelson (née Felten) Monica Georges, PhD Kristie Mikus, DrPH, MPA Marissa Chmiola Clayton Opiyo Susan Lin Sibusiso Hlatjwako Esther Anyango Martha Songa Faith Wamaitha Sharifa Hussein Helen Owino Rebecca Mwima Mathelemusa Diketso Charles Wanga

At #HSR2024 in Nagasaki, PATH joined global health leaders, researchers, policymakers, and advocates to explore a critical theme for #UHC2030: building just and sustainable health systems. A fishbowl session led by PATH and the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research centered the voices of knowledge producers and users closest to the health system in a discussion of what it takes to foster a learning culture. 💡 Key takeaways: ➡️ Learning health systems improve service delivery and enhance the quality of care. ➡️ Adaptive, informal learning techniques are needed to capture how health systems are evolving. ➡️ An institutional approach to learning supports continuous improvement and informed decision-making. ➡️ Digital tools enhance real-time learning exchange. What's still needed: ➡️ Better documentation of what learning strategies work and why. ➡️ Uptake and use of learnings to inform practice change. ➡️ Increased South-South collaboration. ➡️ Improved coordination across donors (#LusakaAgenda) and opportunities for learning exchange among donors, governments, and grantees. ➡️ More country-driven prioritization of learning topics through consultation with community members. PATH continues to work with partners, governments, and communities to strengthen learning that advances integrated, resilient #PHC systems. Learn more about our work: https://lnkd.in/d2qbSjMH.

Last week, PATH attended the 2024 National Shuffle Dance Championship in Hai Phong City, hosted by the Sports Authority of Vietnam. This event brought together more than 1,300 athletes from 76 clubs nationwide to celebrate the transformative power of sports for all ages. At our event booth, supported by the International Olympic Committee, more than 200 visitors engaged in fun, interactive activities like healthy lifestyle quizzes, rope-jumping challenges, and photo opportunities with messages like “Sports today, health tomorrow.” We also introduced the Community Sport and Health Cooperation Initiative, raising awareness of how daily physical activity can prevent noncommunicable diseases and promote well-being. Together, we’re championing the role of community sports in building healthier lives. Watch the recap. #HealthEquity #NCDs #CommunitySports

As 2024 comes to a close, the PATH Malaria team reflects on the life and legacy of Dr. Carlos “Kent” Campbell, a visionary leader in the global effort to #EndMalaria. Kent's career spanned a wide range of roles. He began his work with malaria at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and supported the development of the University of Arizona's Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. In 2004, he launched PATH’s Malaria Control and Elimination Partnership in Africa (MACEPA), funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. After leaving PATH, he served as president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH). Learn more about Kent's lasting contributions to malaria prevention and control: https://bit.ly/3P0Kmn8

Meet Dr. Shabir Madhi and Dr. Cathy Ndiaye, two committed public health researchers working to save lives with one powerful intervention: vaccines. Dr. Madhi is a physician and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand. His research was critical to developing the first maternal vaccine protecting infants from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)—a leading cause of infant pneumonia and bronchitis. With 97% of RSV-related infant deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, Dr. Mahdi is now focused on ensuring more communities around the world can access this life-saving tool. Dr. Ndiaye knows firsthand the costs of cervical cancer: She lost her aunt and grandmother to the disease during her childhood. But it wasn’t until she moved to the US for her education that she learned of the stark disparities in access to effective prevention and treatment around the world. Now the Director of HPV Vaccine Programs at PATH, she’s helping expand access to HPV vaccines that can prevent cervical cancer with a single dose, and paving the way toward a world where no woman suffers from this disease. Read our recent TIME feature to learn more about Dr. Madhi and Dr. Ndiaye’s work and the incredible power of vaccines: https://bit.ly/4gCXDOj

Severe bleeding after childbirth can happen to any woman, but 99% of resulting deaths occur in low-resource settings. Why? Because a lifesaving intervention readily available in high-income countries—the uterine balloon tamponade—is far too expensive for the rest of the world. Access to health care shouldn’t be determined by where you live, so PATH researchers created a new, lower-cost version of the UBT. It's projected to save 169,000 lives by 2030. 🤰🏽Support safe childbirth for every woman, everywhere. Gifts made by December 31 will be matched 2x! https://bit.ly/49HI5GH #MaternalHealth #WomensHealth #HealthEquity