News and Stories
WHO/AFRO Regional NCD Meeting Includes PEN-Plus
Following the adoption of the PEN-Plus strategy to address severe NCDs at first-level referral health facilities by the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO/AFRO), PEN-Plus and the NCDI Poverty Network were agenda items at the Regional Meeting of WHO staff responsible for the fight against non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Network Promotes PEN-Plus at ISPAD Conference
A team that included NCDI Poverty Network Steering Committee Co-Chair Gene Bukhman as well as Type 1 Diabetes and Global Health Equity Research Fellows Celina Trujillo and Apoorva Gomber traveled to Abu Dhabi to represent the Network and promote PEN-Plus at the 48th annual International Society of Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD) Conference, 13-16 October.
Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity Celebrates Inaugural Symposium
The Center for Integration Science in Global Health Equity (CIS) hosted its inaugural symposium on Thursday, 10 November 2022 at the Joseph B. Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School (HMS).
PEN-Plus on the Agenda at WAHO Regional Review Meeting
Following the adoption of the PEN-Plus strategy to address severe NCDs at first-level referral health facilities by the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO/AFRO), the West African Health Organization (WAHO) hosted a three-day regional review meeting on the WHO Package of Essential NCD Interventions for Primary Health Care (WHO PEN) that included a presentation on PEN-Plus and the NCDI Poverty Network. Participants met in Cape Verde between 14-16 September 2022.
DRC Commission Convenes for Situation Analysis Meeting and Prepares for Priority-Setting
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) NCDI Poverty Commission met for its first technical meeting on 27 September in Kinshasa to review national NCDI data as part an initial situation analysis.
Knowledge Exchange Series Continues with Overview of PEN-Plus
The NCDI Poverty Network Secretariat hosted the third installment of the current Knowledge Exchange series on 19 October. The discussion focused on PEN-Plus and how the integrated care delivery strategy is being implemented and scaled up across Africa and Southern Asia.
Ghana NCDI Poverty Commission Holds Launch Meeting
The Ghana NCDI Poverty Commission held its kickoff meeting on 5 October 2022 at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana.
Network Wins UN Inter-Agency Task Force and WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care Award
The NCDI Poverty Network was honored to be one of 18 organizations to receive 2022 UN Inter-Agency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of NCDs and WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care awards.
PEN-Plus in Action Introduces a Global Partnership to Fight Severe, Chronic NCDs
More than 60 representatives of leading global health policy, technical, advocacy, and financing institutions and people living with NCDs gathered at UNICEF House in New York on September 15, 2022, to introduce the PEN-Plus Partnership, a major international initiative to address the global burden of severe NCDs and injuries that cause more than 500,000 avoidable deaths every year among children and young adults living in extreme poverty.
Voices of NCD Poverty Advocacy Fellow Leads Workshop on Understanding Global Burden of Sickle Cell Disease
More than 60 clinical experts, civil society members, people living with sickle cell disease (SCD), and NCD advocates from around the world came together on 25 August 2022 to discuss the burden and barriers of accessing care delivery for SCD in rural areas.
WHO/AFRO Member States Adopt Regional Strategy to Implement PEN-Plus
On 23 August 2022, the 47 Member States of the WHO/AFRO region voted to adopt the PEN-Plus strategy to address severe NCDs at first-level referral health facilities in the region.
Knowledge Exchange Focuses on How to Prioritize Severe NCDs and Injuries that Impact Children and Young Adults
The NCDI Poverty Network Secretariat hosted the second installment of the Network’s new Knowledge Exchange series on 28 June 2022.
Zambia NCDI Poverty Commission Announces PEN-Plus Initiation
The Zambia Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ) officially launched the Zambia NCDI Poverty Commission Report on 29 June 2022 in Lusaka and announced that they will initiate PEN-Plus services at two district hospitals in the coming months.
Nigeria NCDI Poverty Commission Holds Priority Setting Workshop
The Nigeria NCDI Poverty Commission met in Abuja and online on 14 July 2022 to review priority non-communicable diseases and injuries (NCDIs) and plan next steps.
Major Milestones for the Three East African Countries Implementing PEN-Plus
Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia are on track to open their first PEN-Plus clinics and training sites in the coming months.
Network Promotes PEN-Plus at 4th Global Congress on Sickle Cell Disease
A team that included NCDI Poverty Network Co-Chair Dr. Gene Bukhman, Voices Advocacy Fellow Eunice Owino, and Advocacy & Training Associate Lauren Brown traveled to Paris in June to represent the Network and promote PEN-Plus at the 4th Global Congress on Sickle Cell Disease (SCD).
Cameroon Commission Sets Priorities Based on Situation Analysis
The Cameroon NCDI Poverty Commission convened in Yaounde for a four-hour meeting on 31 May to set priorities based on an initial analysis of the non-communicable diseases and injuries (NCDI) burden in the country.
WHO Leaders Discuss PEN-Plus at the World Health Assembly
Leaders from the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO), WHO Headquarters, and other stakeholders invested in the implementation of PEN-Plus met in Geneva on 24 May to discuss PEN-Plus as a key strategy for decentralizing care for severe NCDs and providing the world’s most vulnerable with accessible and affordable health care for chronic conditions including type 1 diabetes (T1D), sickle cell disease (SCD), and rheumatic and congenital heart disease (RHD/CHD).
Network Co-Chairs Dr. Ana Mocumbi and Dr. Gene Bukhman Travel to Sofala Province Ahead of PEN-Plus Implementation in Mozambique
NCDI Poverty Network Co-Chair Dr. Ana Mocumbi and the Mozambique Co-Secretariat and Southern Africa Regional Hub team recently hosted NCDI Poverty Network Co-Chair Dr. Gene Bukhman and Director of Programs Dr. Emily Wroe for a three-day visit to the provinces of Maputo and Sofala as Mozambique prepares to implement PEN-Plus.