Tag: FIND

Categories
Add Resources - Scaling Up & Sustainability

RFP: Innovations in COVID-19 Antigen RDT Rollout in Underserved Populations

Street scene outside the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, Delhi.December 2017Photo credit: FIND / Ben Phillips

Searching for innovative ways to implement screening programmes for SARS-CoV-2 in underserved communities,  the ACT-Accelerator, FIND and IRD Global issued this request for proposals in May 2021.

The focus of the programmes was low- and middle-income countries. Globally stark inequities exist, with these countries not having adequate access to diagnostics during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator is a global collaboration focused on accelerating the development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines. 

FIND is a global non-profit organization focusing on diagnostics for major diseases, and IRD Global is a global health delivery and research organization.

The project was projected to involve customizing training materials, conducting training and proficiency assessment of trainees, and implementing and monitoring testing programmes within local policies and guidelines. 

Categories
Add Resources - Scaling Up & Sustainability

Project of COVID-19 active case finding using antigen rapid diagnostic tests in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The rollout in Africa of new World Health Organization (WHO)-approved SARS-CoV-2 rapid antigen test (Ag-RDTs) has significantly increased screening capacity in some African countries, like Zimbabwe and Rwanda, marking a real turning point in the fight against COVID-19 in the Africa region. Although the DRC is considered a pioneer in scaling up the use of Ag-RDTs through health facility and community-based COVID-19 active case finding, testing capacity remains very low, with a current average of 1.5 tests carried out per 10,000 population per week, against a standard of at least 10 tests per 10,000 per week. 

Given this low screening capacity, it is clear that there is under-reporting of COVID-19 cases. According to WHO AFRO estimates, only 1 in 7 cases would be detected in DRC. In an attempt to improve the case detection rate, the Ministry of Health, with the technical and financial support from the WHO DRC country office, has implemented since January 2021 an innovative pilot project for active case finding of COVID-19 using Ag-RDT screening in the community and in health facilities. This project is currently operational in 37 active health zones in 8 of the most affected provinces. 

This report presents the cumulative results obtained, lessons learned, challenges, and future prospects after 9 months of implementation (January to September 2021) of the activities of this pilot strategy of active COVID-19 case findings in the DRC community using Ag-RDTs. This report marks the official end of the GAVI (Phase I) and FIND (Phase II) funding. 

Categories
Add Resources - Scaling Up & Sustainability

Monitored Implementation of COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Screening at Taxi Ranks in Johannesburg, South Africa

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of many innovations, including digital solutions to support access to diagnostics. These digital tools can be used by countries to expand support community-based testing and lessen the need to travel distances to clinical settings by moving testing meet patients where they are. 

This operational research study examines the utility of rapid diagnostics tests (RDTs) for COVID-19 detection in combination with an end-to-end digital health solution.This study took place between June and September 2021 at three local taxi ranks  in Johannesburg, South Africa. Over 15,000 members of the public were screened for COVID-19 risk factors via a digital questionnaire. Overall, the usage of the digital tool combined with RDTs were shown to improve decentralized service delivery, results reporting, and follow-up of COVID-19 testing at the community level. 

Categories
Add Resources - Scaling Up & Sustainability

WHO Public Health Labs Webinar – Accelerating community access to SARS-CoV-2 testing

Health Poverty Action Visiting Hospitals at Kompong Chhnang & Battambong Province

In this webinar, co-hosted by WHO and FIND, speakers discussed efforts undertaken through the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT)-Accelerator to enable countries to improve their community-based testing for SARS-CoV-2 through the development of testing protocols and training of health-care workers, with experience sharing from Somalia and Zimbabwe.

Participants also discussed the newly published interim guidance on Use of SARS-CoV-2 antigen-detection rapid diagnostic tests for COVID-19 self-testing.

Categories
Add Resources - Scaling Up & Sustainability

Update on global access to testing survey

Health Poverty Action Visiting Hospitals at Kompong Chhnang & Battambong Province

This webinar, delivered in February 2022 by FIND via the ACT-A CSO Platform, captures data on perceptions on access to COVID-19. The webinar covers approach and methodologies for the survey as well as preliminary findings. 

The survey recorded over 12,000 responses in 10 countries: Brazil, India, Egypt, Indonesia, Kenya, Peru, South Africa, Tunisia, Uganda, and Viet Nam. Over 50% of respondents reported difficulty in accessing a test when needed, with key contribung factors being lack of testing facilities, prohibitive costs, and the difficulty traveling to testing facilities.

Categories
Featured Work - Research & Development

Landscape of RDT-reading apps

Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) based on lateral flow assays have emerged as important diagnostic tools in the management of diseases such as malaria and COVID-19. However, errors can arise when individuals perform these tests and interpret their results. Mobile smartphone applications (apps) for reading RDTs offer a promising option to improve the accuracy of the interpretation of test results. This has been demonstrated with hardware RDT readers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). With apps, however, no additional hardware is needed, apart from a smartphone. Such smartphones are already becoming widely available, avoiding cost, supply chain, and maintenance concerns that would occur if new hardware needed to be deployed to read RDTs. 

The aim of this report is to share a summary of publicly available information about mobile applications for reading RDTs. The focus is on RDT-reading apps that do not require additional hardware beyond a mobile device (meaning a smartphone or tablet) and the RDT kit. Apps for diseases of poverty and low-resource settings are of particular interest, but the report also includes other apps, to support an understanding of this industry overall.

Categories
Featured Work - Research & Development

Target Product Profile for Readers of Rapid Diagnostic Tests

Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) have played a critical role in the global COVID-19 response, as well as in the management and diagnosis of other diseases, such as malaria and HIV. However, without correct performance of the test and interpretation of the result, the utility of these tests may be compromised, presenting timely and accurate clinical assessment and disease surveillance. 

This Target Product Profile lays out minimal and optimal characteristics for RDT readers to serve as companion tools to support improved test performance, interpretation, and reporting.  

Categories
Featured Work - Manufacturing

COVID-19 diagnostics: preserving manufacturing capacity for future pandemics

Manufacturing capacity for diagnostics increased at a rapid rate during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is estimated to have grown by 200% since the onset of the pandemic. Sustaining this expanded capacity over the long term will require coordinated strategies to ensure the progress made in recent years is not lost. 


The authors of this commentary piece, representing the ACT-A Diagnostics Partnership, suggest strategies which could be implemented to preserve manufacturing capacity in the face of future pandemic threats.

Categories
Featured Work - Awareness & Advocacy

FIND and Unitaid invest US$2 million to support advocacy for COVID-19 test-and-treat approaches in low- and middle-income countries

FIND, the global alliance for diagnostics and Unitaid are investing US$2 million in a coordinated advocacy programme spanning 19 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) designed to boost access and uptake of COVID-19 tests and treatments. A total of 21 organizations with a diverse range of healthcare expertise have been selected from more than 300 applicants, following a request for proposals (RFP) and competitive selection process that included assessment by a panel of independent reviewers. Criteria for funding included previous public health advocacy experience and expected impact of test-and-treat advocacy in the targeted region.

Projects range in duration from 6 to 18 months, and will raise awareness of COVID-19 testing and treatment among the public, key opinion leaders, and specific high-risk and vulnerable groups. Partners include (listed alphabetically by country): Mhair Educational, Health and Human Rights Organization (Afghanistan), Family Planning Association of Bangladesh (Bangladesh), IMAG Communication (Burkina Faso), Maison des Associations de lutte contre le Sida (Burkina Faso), Health Poverty Action Cambodia (Cambodia), Caritas Développement Mbujimayi (Democratic Republic of the Congo), TB Alert India (India), Pi Consulting (India), Kenya AIDS NGOs Consortium (Kenya), Health Poverty Action Laos (Laos), Caritas Lesotho (Lesotho), ESTAMOS (Mozambique), REDTRANS (Nicaragua), Shifa Foundation (Pakistan), Media for Deaf Rwanda (Rwanda), South Sudan Community Change Agency (South Sudan), Sikika (Tanzania), Université Mahmoud El Materi (Tunisia), HEPS (Uganda), Zambia Interfaith Working Group (Zambia), Pan-African Treatment Access Movement (Zimbabwe).

Categories
Resource Centre - Media & Press

Democratizing Access to Testing

FIND, alongside the Global Fund, was named co-convener of the diagnostics pillar of the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-Accelerator) in 2020.

Traditional models of diagnostic testing are often characterized by a centralized approach, particularly true in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, there are several common barriers to centralized testing.

FIND is part of the process to remedy this, and this includes how the ACT-Accelerator has, since inception, worked to transform access to decentralized testing.

This FIND case study explores the process and partnerships that have driven progress across four stages:

  1. Accelerating innovation in research and development
  2. Ensuring efficient and sustainable test supplies
  3. Supporting robust national policy development
  4. Mobilizing community-based and self-testing strategies.

The study also highlights learning, impact and recommendations from a decentralized approach in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read the case study here