ASTMH Annual Meeting 2024

MSF Scientific Days in Latin America 2024 focused on two thematic areas:

Climate Emergency in the Americas: What Are We Seeing as a Medical Humanitarian Organization and How Are We Responding?

• MSF has long responded to health crises aggravated by the climate emergency —such as disease outbreaks, food insecurity, and displacement—and these events are intensifying in severity and frequency. This session presented examples of how MSF is adapting to address climate-related emergencies in the region, and explored strategies for future humanitarian action.

Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Interventions in Violence, Migration, and Indigenous Health Projects

• This session explored the complexities of providing mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in some of the region’s most challenging settings. It focused on interventions in areas affected by violence, the mental health impact on migrants, and the unique needs of indigenous populations. The discussion highlighted innovative strategies, culturally sensitive approaches, and the importance of integrating MHPSS into healthcare projects in these complex settings.

Each year hundreds of thousands of people die from a neglected tropical disease, while many more suffer serious illness or lifelong disability. Yet as we mark World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day on 30th January, global progress towards eliminating these diseases is threatened by shifting global health priorities and declining investment in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The content collection linked below offers a snapshot of MSF’s work on managing some of the most deadly NTDs, finding better tools and models of care for highly affected populations, and advocating for greater access to care and increased global funding. Several authors describe our programs and lessons learned from a decade of treating snakebite victims in sub-Saharan Africa. Two studies evaluate shorter, less toxic treatment for visceral leischmaniasis, while a policy analysis proposes critical steps towards eliminating this horrific disease in East Africa. Last, reports from Sokoto, Nigeria describe the collaborative development of a comprehensive model of care for noma.