ASTMH News
June 2012
1. Save the Children CEO Carolyn S. Miles and Curtin University's Michael Alpers Address Annual Meeting, Nov. 11-15, 2012
ASTMH is pleased to announce that Carolyn S. Miles, MBA, President and CEO of Save the Children, will deliver the opening keynote in Atlanta. "The connector points between Save the Children and ASTMH are many and stem from our shared belief that every child deserves the opportunity to live a strong, healthy and meaningful life," said ASTMH President James W. Kazura, MD, FASTMH. With an estimated 7 million children dying before age 5 each year, Miles and Save the Children are charged with saving and improving the lives of individuals in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and even the U.S. Read Miles' bio.
Michael Alpers, MBBS, MA, FTWAS, FACTM, FAFPHM, FRS, will deliver the prestigious Charles Franklin Craig Lecture. Alpers is an honorary Member of the ASTMH and the John Curtin Distinguished Professor of International Health at Curtin University in Perth, Australia. "Michael Alpers is an international leader in translational and basic research relevant to the health needs of people in developing countries," Kazura said. "Just one example is his seminal contribution to unraveling the genetic complexity of prion diseases such as Kuru." Read Alpers' bio.
2. Member Profile: Kevin Marsha, MD, ChB, FRCD, KEMRI-Wellcome Trust
You have many choices of professional societies to which to belong--why ASTMH?
ASTMH is generally recognised as one of the most important professional organisations for anyone interested in tropical medicine. It's a large and very active organisation with global reach. It is definitely an international society.
Why be a member when you can attend the Annual Meeting and purchase AJTMH articles without being a member?
I think a sense of collegiality is very important--and this is what one gets from being a member of an organisation like ASTMH. Now that you asked the question, perhaps I should think of just attending the meetings--but I don't think I will!
ASTMH advocates for increased U.S. federal funding for tropical medicine/global health research. From your viewpoint in Kenya, is this a priority for the Society?
Absolutely! Read the entire Q&A at the ASTMH blog.
3. We Must Not Let History Repeat Itself: External Evaluation of the PMI
This is a "time for celebration, but also a time for reflection," said Kent Campbell, MD, MPH, of PATH--and a past ASTMH president--at the June 5 Washington, DC, briefing discussing the recently released external evaluation of the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI). In partnership with PATH, PSI, World Vision, Malaria No More and Nothing But Nets, the session included reports from Jonathan Simon, MPH, DSc, lead investigator of the external evaluation and Professor, Boston University School of Health; Rear Adm. R. Timothy Ziemer, U.S. Global Malaria Coordinator, PMI; and Kent Campbell and Elena Olivi, PSI. Access the evaluation report.
4. ASTMH Congratulates WRAIR, Named "Malaria Champion"
Malaria No More presented WRAIR with its Malaria Action Award at its annual Malaria Champions breakfast in Washington, DC, on June 7. The award recognizes "...the work of countless researchers in the efforts to develop effective malaria treatments and vaccines, a continuous effort due to the ever-changing nature of the vector host." ASTMH member Col. Pete Weina, MD, PhD, accepted the award on behalf of generations of researchers who dedicated their lives to fighting malaria and expressed hope that current vaccines may one day eradicate malaria entirely. Read more.
5. ASTMH Leadership on Capitol Hill: Hill Visits and On the Record Calling for Increasing FY2013 DoD Funding for Trop Med Research
On May 21, Society President James W. Kazura; President-Elect David Walker, MD; and Councilors Dan Bausch, MD, MPH; Steve Higgs, PhD, FRES, FASTMH; and Desiree Labeaud, MD, made personal office visits to members of the Senate and House making the case for an increased investment in research and programmatic funding for tropical medicine/global health funding for NIH, CDC, USAID and the Department of Defense. In addition to the message of reducing needless human suffering, they cited the positive economic impact of this funding to their institutions, their respective states and to America. Invitations to visit their institutions were extended, resulting in possible visits by members of the Kansas and Louisiana delegations to Kansas State University and Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
Approximately a week later, on behalf of the Society, Executive Director Karen A. Goraleski offered public witness testimony before the U.S. Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, in particular highlighting the efforts of WRAIR, USAMRIID and USNMRC in eradicating malaria and other tropical diseases around the world. Goraleski testified that more than a regional issue, these diseases, as well as growing drug resistance, are threats to U.S. service members and travelers. Despite a difficult economic climate, funding this R&D will lead to advances in treatment and prevention of these diseases--including new drugs, vaccines and diagnostics--is the smart thing to do for the country and the right thing for the world.
6. Federal Funding: Where Are We?
Appropriations time is well underway in Washington, DC. A total of 12 appropriations bills must pass by September 30, 2012, and sequestration cuts will go into effect in January 2013. Despite some early progress in developing the various appropriations bills, it is possible (and some say likely) that Congress won't be able to agree on what the final funding will be for all of these bills. If this is the case, one of two things will happen: 1) A continuing resolution will be passed in which government will be funded at last year's levels; or 2) An omnibus bill will be passed that rolls several or all of the appropriations bills onto one package. Read more.
7. ASTMH in Texas: Global Health R&D and the Hidden Burden of NTDs in Texas
ASTMH, in partnership with the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, Research!America, Sabin Vaccine Institute and Texas Children's Hospital, hosted a daylong forum on NTDs in Texas. The June 7 forum, attended by more than 150 people, was held at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and home of the nation's first school of tropical medicine, led by Dean Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD, FASTMH, and Society past president. Hotez opened the forum noting the potential 10 million cases of Chagas disease in North America and in Texas, where almost 5 million people live in poverty.
ASTMH member speakers included Bruce Lee, University of Pittsburgh; Hal Margolis, MD, CDC; Peter Melby, MD, UTMB; and Sue Montgomery, MPH, DVM, CDR, CDC. Plenary speakers included Joseph McCormick, MD, Regional Dean, University of Texas, Brownville, and Jon Andrus, MD, Deputy Director, PAHO. Karen A. Goraleski moderated panel discussions on neglected parasitic, viral and bacterial diseases and the strategies, partnerships and funding concerns that R&D for NTDs. View cross-cutting themes and summary by Peter Hotez.
8. ASTMH's Peter J. Hotez, Joseph M. Vinetz Elected to Prestigious AAP
ASTMH joins with Past President Steve Hoffman, MD, DTMH, in congratulating Past President Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD, FASTMH, and AJTMH Editor-in-Chief Joseph M. Vinetz, MD, FASTMH, on their election to the Association of American Physicians (AAP), also known as the society for the "Old Turks." Founded in 1885, the AAP shares with ASTMH the goals of increasing medical knowledge and research in pursuit of advances in clinical medicine. Election to the AAP is one of the highest honors accorded to physician-scientists. Hotez and Vinetz join more than 1,300 active members--and approximately 600 emeritus and honorary members--in the U.S., Canada and other countries.
9. William Foege, MD, MPH, Receives Congressional Medal of Freedom
ASTMH congratulates physician and epidemiologist William Foege, MD, MPH, on being awarded the Congressional Medal of Freedom. Foege served as Director of the CDC from 1977-83 and helped lead the successful campaign to eradicate smallpox in the 1970s. With colleagues, he founded the Task Force for Child Survival in 1984. Foege became Executive Director of The Carter Center in 1986 and continues to serve the organization as a Senior Fellow. Foege received the Medal of Freedom at a recent ceremony at the White House.
10. New! Case Studies for Global Health Update Available Now
A new collection of case studies that illustrate how individuals, non- and for-profit organizations and governments work together to solve global health challenges is now available. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Biotechnology Industry Organization, Global Health Progress, International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, Infectious Disease Research Institute, Association of University Technology Managers and WHO's Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases present a set of multi-sector case studies that identify ways in which key stakeholders are addressing global health concerns.
11. Offer Your Feedback on the 2012 Yellow Book
Do you use the Yellow Book? What do you like best about it? What features could be added or improved? You may have received an email from Oxford University Press, the publisher of CDC Health Information for International Travel--or Yellow Book--with an online survey about the 2012 edition. If you use the Yellow Book and would like to comment, take the survey.
12. ASTMH Welcomes 74 New Members
Charles Abadam, City of Suffolk
Muhammed Afolabi, Medical Research Council
Atique Ahmed, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Mudather Ahmednour, London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Awsse Al-Ani, Univ. of Medical Sciences and Technology
Sassan Asgari, Univ. of Queensland
Giri Athrey, Texas A&M Univ.
Amrish Y. Baidjoe, Radboud Univ. Nijmegen
Sheila Barasa, Ifakara Health Institute
Sara Berthe, Johns Hopkins University
Nana Yaa Boadu, Univ. of Alberta
Adetinuke (Mary) Boyd, Univ. of Maryland School of Medicine
Yvonne Butler, Univ. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Stacie Canan, Celgene Corporation
Fredy Ccopa-Aguilar, Univ. Peruana Cayetano Heredia
Grace Chan, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Serena Chiang, NIAID
Lauren Cohee, Univ. of Maryland
Michael Coleman, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
Benjamin Dahl, CDC
Rachel Daniels, Harvard School of Public Health
Jenn Duncombe, Univ. of Queensland
Roberta Engel, Univ. of Notre Dame
Mosoka Fallah, Refuge Place International
Giovanfrancesco Ferrari, Swiss Tropical & Public Health Institute
Julia Goldberg, Harvard School of Public Health
Benjamin Hanisch, Univ. of Minnesota
Danica Helb, Univ. of California-Berkeley
Jessica Hostetler, NIH
Molly Hughes, Univ. of Virginia School of Medicine
Lewis Hun, Univ. of Arizona
Kristen Kahle, Integral Molecular, Inc.
Noriko Kitamura, NIH
Tajudeen Kolawole, Univ. of Ilorin
Timothy Long, Univ. of Georgia
Chad MacArthur, Helen Keller International
Paulo Manrique, Univ. Peruana Cayetano Tropical
Alice Mbewe-Mvula, Univ. of Oxford
Amanda Michael, Drexel Univ. College of Medicine
Meta Michels, Radboud Univ. Nijmegen Medical Center
Paul Morris, USUHS
Marina Mourao, FIOCRUZ
Luz Maria Moyano-Vidal, Univ. Peruana Cayetano Heredia
Francisca Mutapi, Univ. of Edinburgh
Joseph Myers, Summa Health System
Chile Ogugua, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Oluwatosin Omole, Harvard School of Public Health
John Openshaw, Stanford Univ.
Lauren Orenstein, Emory Univ. School of Medicine
Eugene Oteng, NIH
Daniel Park, Harvard Univ.
Amy Patterson, The Carter Center
Tchouassi Poumo, Intl. Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology
Leila Ross, Harvard Univ.
Tais Saito, Univ. of Texas Medical Branch
Henrik Salje, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Katharine Schilling, CDC
Jessica Seidman, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Shamala Devi Sekaran, Univ. Malaya
Stephen Seligman, New York Medical College
Ashok Shah, Univ. of Delhi
Marc Simpao, AIMS
Geoffrey Siwo, Univ. of Notre Dame
John Szumowski, Univ. of Washington
Anne Teirlinck, Radboud Univ. Nijmegen Medical Center
Santha Kumar Tiruppadiripuliyur, Columbia Univ. Medical Center
Emily Toubali, Helen Keller International
Carla Valenzuela, Vanderbilt Univ.
Nancy Vu, Univ. of Utah
Rachel Wake, Univ. of London
Philippa West, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Genevieve Wojcik, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Yaobi Zhang, Helen Keller International