topnaman | Malaria blog

An anonymous emailer (many thanks) wrote to me to share news about a successful  microfinance program which improved malaria education. I was impressed with their work, and their efforts at rigorous evaluation. Something bugged me though – the juxtaposition of microfinance and malaria appeared unnatural. Making microfinance available is a worthwhile initiative, but why do [...]

It’s world malaria day. In the past year, a combination of sources (papers, program reports, routine surveillance, and stories from workers) suggest malaria cases and deaths are falling in many places. That’s good news indeed.

Image from the Wellcome Trust This is the second post (first one) of my attempt at profiling different malaria workers. Not many have heard of the epidemiologist Rickard Christophers (1873 – 1978). I came across his work accidentally, which was fortunate, because his lessons hold great promise for our efforts today. Having worked in the [...]

The title is from a provocative article by Bart Knols (of MalariaWorld) on the modern malaria research establishment. I came across the piece through some related commentary at the terrific PloS Speaking of Medicine blog. His central thesis is a somewhat rhetorical question: “Is the bulk of today’s malaria research helping to control malaria?” As [...]

I’m torn about press releases of scientific and programmatic work. On one hand issuing press releases rapidly disseminates findings, generates interest, and helps reach new audiences. Every institution, whether a university, NGO, or even a multilateral, has to maintain a supportive constituency and most will seek to ever expand this base. The pressure to leverage [...]