Intensify disease management using existing tools

IDM focuses on diseases for which cost-effective control tools do not exist and where large-scale use of existing tools is limited.

The diseases share the following characteristics:

• difficult and costly to manage – diagnosis, treatment and follow up;
• burden is poorly understood;
• lack of appropriate control tools;
• relatively lower investment in research and development;
• people affected often live in remote rural areas with limited access to diagnosis and treatment.

Ultimate goal is to allow these diseases to be easily managed within the primary health-care system and ultimately eliminated as a public health problem. 

Strategy

To enhance NTD control by combining expertise in disease-specific areas with cross-cutting issues such as surveillance, capacity building, advocacy and research.