Targeting
Malaria is the most common reason given for illness and admission to hospital in many African countries. However, malaria is often overdiagnosed or misdiagnosed in the absence of proper testing.
Useful resources | Peer-reviewed publications | Projects | NewsUseful resources
Training manuals: Use of artemisinin-based combination therapies and rapid diagnostic tests for home-based management of fever in Uganda
Resource to train community health workers on the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests and fever management.
Training manuals of drug shop trial in Uganda
Use of rapid diagnostic tests by drug shop vendors to improve malaria treatment
Training manuals from REACT study in Cameroon
The REACT Facilitator and Participant Manuals on improving malaria diagnosis and treatment
Training health workers to improve malaria diagnosis in Cameroon and Nigeria (Policy Brief)
REACT Policy Brief
TACT trainer and trainee manuals and patient leaflet
The TACT training manuals and patient leaflet were designed to support the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs).
REACT Summary of Qualitative results - Cameroon Sept 2010
Prospectus du patient et manuels du formateur et du stagiaire pour TACT
Le prospectus du patient et les manuels de formation pour TACT ont t conus pour faciliter lutilisation des tests de dpistage rapide du paludisme (RDT).
PRIME trainer and learner manuals
Nine new workshops, focused on Health Centre Management and Patient Centred Services.
Policy Brief PRIME & PROCESS
Evaluating the impact of a public health centre intervention on management of malaria and health outcomes of children in Uganda: Results from the PRIME & PROCESS studies
Policy brief for IMPACT2 project
Evaluating policies in Tanzania to improve malaria diagnosis and treatment
Policy brief for Afghanistan study
Community Case Management of Malaria in Afghanistan
Policy brief and posters for community management project in Uganda
Use of rapid diagnostic tests to improve malaria treatment in the community in Uganda
Manuels de formation pour l'étude REACT au Cameroun
Les manuels du formateur et du participant REACT sur l'amlioration du dpistage et du traitement du paludisme
Manuels de formation de l'étude en pharmacie en Ouganda
Utilisation des tests de dpistage rapide par les pharmaciens afin d'amliorer le traitement du paludisme
Manuels de formation : utilisation des combinaisons thérapeutiques à base d'artémisinine et des tests de dépistage rapide pour la prise en charge à domicile de la fièvre en Ouganda
Ressource pour former les personnels de sant communautaires l'utilisation des tests de dpistage rapide du paludisme et la prise en charge de la fivre.
Manuais TACT para formadores e formandos e folheto TACT para pacientes
Os manuais de formao TACT e o folheto TACT para pacientes foram concebidos para promover a utilizao dos testes de diagnstico rpido (RDT) da malria.
Manuais de formação: Utilização de terapias combinadas à base de artemisina e de testes de diagnóstico rápido para a gestão domiciliária da febre no Uganda
Recurso para ministrar formao aos funcionrios dos servios de sade comunitrio sobre a utilizao de testes de diagnstico rpido para a malria e sobre a gesto dos estados febris.
Manuais de formação para ensaio realizado em postos de venda de medicamentos no Uganda
Utilizao de testes de diagnstico rpido por vendedores de postos de venda de medicamentos para melhorar o tratamento da malria
Manuais de formação do estudo REACT realizado nos Camarões
Manuais REACT para formadores e participantes sobre a melhoria do diagnstico e tratamento da malria
Interventions to improve providers' ability to diagnose and treat uncomplicated Malaria
Literature review from the REACT studies
Formation des travailleurs de santé à l’amélioration du dépistage du paludisme au Cameroun et au Nigéria
REACT policy brief
ACT Consortium Afghanistan Entry & Exit Interview Study
Summary results from qualitative analysis
Peer-reviewed publications
Would rational use of antibiotics be compromised in the era of test-based management of malaria?
Tropical Medicine and International Health
Willingness-to-pay for a rapid malaria diagnostic test and artemisinin-based combination therapy from private drug shops in Mukono district, Uganda
Health Policy and Planning
Treatment of uncomplicated malaria at public health facilities and medicine retailers in southeastern Nigeria
Malaria Journal
The usefulness of rapid diagnostic tests in the new context of low Malaria transmission in Zanzibar
PLOS ONE
The PROCESS study: a protocol to evaluate the implementation, mechanisms of effect and context of an intervention to enhance public health centres in Tororo, Uganda
Implementation Science
The need for new antibiotics
The Lancet
The feasibility of introducing rapid diagnostic tests for malaria in drug shops in Uganda
Malaria Journal
The development of effective behaviour change interventions to support the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests by Tanzanian clinicians
Implementation Science
Socially-marketed rapid diagnostic tests and ACT in the private sector: ten years of experience in Cambodia
Malaria Journal
Shifting from presumptive to test-based management of malaria - Technical basis and implications for malaria control in Ghana
Ghana Medical Journal
REACT Summary of Qualitative results - Cameroon Sept 2010
Rapid diagnostic tests to improve treatment of malaria and other febrile illnesses: patient randomised effectiveness trial in primary care clinics in Afghanistan
British Medical Journal
Overdiagnosis and mistreatment of malaria among febrile patients at primary healthcare level in Afghanistan: observational study
British Medical Journal
Monitoring patient care through health facility exit interviews: an assessment of the Hawthorne effect in a trial of adherence to malaria treatment guidelines in Tanzania
BMC infectious diseases
Mind the gap: Knowledge and practice of providers treating uncomplicated malaria at public and mission health facilities, pharmacies and drug stores in Cameroon and Nigeria
Health Policy and Planning
Medicine sellers’ perspectives on their role in providing health care in North-West Cameroon: a qualitative study
Health Policy and Planning
Management of febrile children under five years in hospitals and health centres of rural Ghana
Malaria Journal
Malaria prevalence and treatment of febrile patients at health facilities and medicine retailers in Cameroon
Tropical Medicine and International Health
Malaria “diagnosis” and diagnostics in Afghanistan
Qualitative Health Research
Introducing rapid diagnostic tests for malaria into registered drug shops in Uganda: lessons learned and policy implications
Malaria Journal
Introducing malaria rapid diagnostic tests at registered drug shops in Uganda: Limitations of diagnostic testing in the reality of diagnosis
Social Science and Medicine
Improving access to Malaria medicine through private-sector subsidies in seven African countries
Health Affairs
Improving access to health care for malaria in Africa: a review of literature on what attracts patients
Malaria Journal
How can malaria rapid diagnostic tests achieve their potential? A qualitative study of a trial at health facilities in Ghana
Malaria Journal
Getting antimalarials on target: impact of national roll-out of malaria rapid diagnostic tests on health facility treatment in three regions of Tanzania
Tropical Medicine and International Health
Differential prevalence of transporter polymorphisms in symptomatic and asymptomatic Falciparum Malaria infections in Uganda
Journal of Infectious Diseases
Composite endpoints for malaria case-management: not simplifying the picture?
Malaria Journal
Cluster randomized trial of text message reminders to retail staff in Tanzanian drug shops dispensing Artemether-Lumefantrine: Effect on dispenser knowledge and patient adherence
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Challenging logics of complex intervention trials: Community perspectives of a health care improvement intervention in rural Uganda
Social Science & Medicine
Behind the scenes of the PRIME intervention: designing a complex intervention to improve malaria care at public health centres in Uganda
Global Health Action
Basic or enhanced clinician training to improve adherence to malaria treatment guidelines: a cluster-randomised trial in two areas of Cameroon
The Lancet Global Health
Availability and price of malaria rapid diagnostic tests in the public and private health sectors in 2011: results from 10 nationally representative cross-sectional retail surveys.
Tropical Medicine & International Health
Aspirations for quality health care in Uganda: How do we get there?
Human Resources for Health
Are Tanzanian patients attending public facilities or private retailers more likely to adhere to artemisinin-based combination therapy?
Malaria Journal
Appropriate targeting of artemisinin-based combination therapy by community health workers using malaria rapid diagnostic tests: Findings from randomized trials in two contrasting areas of high and low malaria transmission in south western Uganda
Tropical Medicine and International Health
An economic evaluation of home management of Malaria in Uganda: An interactive markov model
PLoS ONE
Afghanistan Entry & Exit Interview Study
Summary results from qualitative analysis
‘It puts life in us and we feel big’: shifts in the local health care system during the introduction of rapid diagnostic tests for malaria into drug shops in Uganda
Critical Public Health
‘As a clinician, you are not managing lab results, you are managing the patient’: How the enactment of malaria at health facilities in Cameroon compares with new WHO guidelines for the use of malaria tests
Social Science and Medicine
Community case management of malaria: exploring support, capacity and motivation of community medicine distributors in Uganda
Health Policy and Planning
Projects
Use of rapid diagnostic tests to improve malaria treatment in the community in Uganda
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Trusting rapid diagnostic tests in Zanzibar
The PRIME trial: Improving health centres to reduce childhood malaria in Uganda
Targeting ACT drugs: the TACT trial
Restricting ACT drugs to patients with positive rapid diagnostic test results
PROCESS: Evaluating how the PRIME intervention worked in practice
Perceptions and impact of introducing rapid diagnostic tests in drug shops
Introducing rapid diagnostic tests in drug shops to improve the targeting of malaria treatment
IMPACT 2: Evaluating policies in Tanzania to improve malaria diagnosis and treatment
How the use of rapid diagnostic tests influences clinicians decision to prescribe ACTs
Costs and effects of strategies to improve malaria diagnosis and treatment in Nigeria
Access and quality of malaria diagnosis and treatment in South-East Asia
News
World Malaria Report 2013: Major progress against disease 'still fragile'
Malaria deaths have declined by 45% globally since 2000 - thanks to prevention and control measures, political commitment and expanded funding. But improving access to diagnosis andWhat are the challenges of scaling up rapid diagnostic tests in Sub-Saharan Africa?
The World Health Organization recommends using malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) and prescribing antimalarials only to patients who have a positive test result. As programmes gearWebinar: Utility and performance of rapid diagnostic tests in areas with low malaria transmission
Recording of the webinar on 12 April 2016 now available. Webinar: Cost-effectiveness of introducing rapid diagnostic tests for malaria in the private sector
The recording of the webinar from 6 April 2016 is now available.Treatments in remote areas urgent to meet Millennium Development Goals
Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) is a strategy that enables those living beyond the reach of health facilities to access lifesaving treatments. It should be a national priorityThe future of community case management of malaria
Motivating volunteers and strengthening support to health systems are critical if community interventions are to become the solution to improving access to primary health care, accordingTesting for malaria reduces overprescription by over 70%
Using malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) in registered drug shops in a highly endemic region in Uganda substantially reduced overdiagnosis of malaria, improving the use of valuableTestes para a malária reduzem a prescrição excessiva em mais de 70%
O uso de testes de diagnóstico rápido para a malária (RDT em inglês) em farmácias licenciadas numa região altamente endémica no UgandaProviding training and supplies to health centres not enough to improve children's health
A trial in a high malaria transmission area in Uganda aimed to improve quality of care for patients with a fever. It showed small improvements in malaria case management, patient satisfactionProgress in malaria leads to overuse of antibiotics
Improving malaria diagnosis decreased the waste of malaria drugs in patients who didn’t need them. Now, clinicians who don’t know what else is causing fever tend to overprescribePrivate sector not giving antimalarials to the people they should
A study in Tanzanian drug shops showed that most malaria patients did not receive an antimalarial and most people who obtained one didn’t in fact have malaria. Patients with fever need better diagnosis and appropriate treatment
Many people who visit health clinics with fever in malaria endemic areas do not have malaria, but they still receive antimalarial drugs. A new report from the World Health OrganizationOkutandikawo enkebera eyamangu mumatundiro geddagala kiyamba mukujanjaba omusujja gwensii
Okukozesebwa kwenkola eyamangu ekebera malaria (Malaria rapid diagnostic test-RDT) mumadduuka amatongole agatunda eddagala mukituundu ekimu mu Uganda ekikosedwa enyo malaria, kiyambyeNew publication summarises ACT Consortium findings
"Answering key questions on malaria" is the lay summary of 25 research studies in 10 coutries in Africa and Asia. It is now available to the public at no cost, in English,Message from our Director - end of 2013
As we wrap up the year, Professor David Schellenberg shares news of recent developments and plans for 2014 in the ACT Consortium.Malaria testing not a simple fix in the private sector
Drug shops offering quick diagnostic tests for malaria can improve treatment, but regulation by authorities is also needed, researchers warn. Malaria researchers launch free kit to develop diagnosis and treatment interventions
The malaria community can now use a Starter Kit to develop diagnosis and treatment interventions in endemic countries. ACT Consortium researchers launched the five resources on WorldMalaria rapid diagnostic tests and research consortia: Day 2 at ECTMIH 2015
The role of community health workers in malaria diagnosis, the cost-effectiveness of rapid diagnostic tests and the contribution of research consortia to malaria policy were ACT ConsortiumMalaria drug resistance a potential 'global disaster'
Malaria experts from the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region and key partners are reiterating a warning that anti-malarial drug resistance is an ever-growing challengeMalaria diagnosis training manuals released
Health workers may now benefit from training manuals to best use malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). The resource was developed during a clinical trial in Tanzania and the authorsMalaria control guidance in Ebola-affected countries
Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have a high burden of malaria and together saw an estimated 6.6 million malaria cases and 20,000 deaths in 2013. WHO has issued guidance on temporaryLe gaspillage des antipaludéens par les personnels de santé au Nigéria coûte cher
Les prestataires de santé formés aux tests de dépistage rapide (RDT) du paludisme prescrivent encore des médicaments antipaludéens onéreuxLe diagnostic du paludisme permet de réduire la surprescription de plus de 70 %
Selon une récente étude parue dans la revue PLOS ONE, l'utilisation de tests de diagnostic rapides (TDR) dans les pharmacies homologuées dans une régionJob vacancy: Research Fellow in Health Economics
The ACT Consortium is seeking an enthusiastic Research Fellow to join the Health Economics and Systems Analysis Group (HESA) of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.Interactive training halves malaria overdiagnosis and prevents wastage of drugs
Interactive training programmes for health workers could reduce overdiagnosis of malaria by half and help prevent valuable drugs from being wasted on patients who don’t have theImproving malaria diagnosis in Asia
Clinicians who use rapid diagnostic tests instead of relying on patients’ symptoms are less likely to overprescribe malaria treatment. The tests are also better at detecting fatalImproving delivery of malaria treatments
Professor David Schellenberg, Director of the ACT Consortium, discusses their work to improve the way artemisinin-based combination therapies are used to treat malaria, as well as theHelp us improve malaria diagnosis and treatment
The ACT Consortium will announce, in Addis Ababa, activities to help improve malaria diagnosis and treatment. The Ethiopian capital will host the first international summit on SocialHealth workers wasting expensive malaria drugs in Nigeria
Health providers trained to perform malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) are still prescribing valuable malaria medicines to patients who do not have malaria, according to new researchGlobal health annual meeting has one of highest ever attendance records
Approximately 3,700 delegates from almost 100 countries attended the 62nd annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) in Washington, DC.Funcionários de saúde na Nigéria desperdiçam medicamentos para a malária dispendiosos
Os fornecedores de serviços de saúde formados para administrar testes de diagnóstico rápido da malária (RDT) continuam a prescrever os valiosos medicamentosEffective malaria control dramatically reduces deaths
The number of people dying from malaria has fallen dramatically since 2000 and malaria cases are also steadily declining, according to the World Malaria Report 2014. Experts highlightDiagnostics in malaria treatment and control: Day 1 at ECTMIH 2015
On the first day of the European Congress on Tropical Medicine and International Health in Basel, Switzerland, the ACT Consortium director and investigators presented findings fromBetter diagnosis, better malaria control: Event on 20 April 2016
Join us in London or online to commemorate World Malaria Day in an interactive session with free resources and a discussion about the importance of malaria diagnosis and the challengesASTMH 2014: Malaria highlights
Bill Gates' announcement to increase malaria funding, strategic plans from the WHO to eliminate malaria and ACT Consortium research results were some of the malaria contributions seenACT Consortium researchers present at ASTMH 2014
The 63rd annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene takes place between 2-6 November in New Orleans, USA. Find out which research results we will presentAccess, targeting, safety and quality of ACT drugs at malaria conference
Delegates debated policy implications for the use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) in the public and private health sectors. ACT Consortium members presented research results'There are more medicines and diagnostic tools, but still no clean water'
Malaria interventions are unlikely to improve health of communities unless the root causes of dysfunctional health systems are tackled, an ACT Consortium researcher told members of
