The Peace Corps Guinea Worm Eradication Program begun in 1989 under the USAID Africa Bureau. The guinea worm is a parasite transmitted by water fleas, which are ingested by drinking contaminated water.
| Title | Final evaluation of the Peace Corps Guinea Worm Eradication Program |
| Publication Type | Miscellaneous |
| Year of Publication | 1992 |
| Authors | LaPin, D |
| Secondary Title | Wash field report |
| Volume | no. 369 |
| Pagination | xvii, 159 p.: 1 map, 3 tab. |
| Date Published | 1992-01-01 |
| Publisher | Water and Sanitation for Health Project (WASH) |
| Place Published | Arlington, VA, USA |
| Keywords | benin, cab92/5, cameroon, case studies, central african republic, disease control, dracontiasis, evaluation, financing, ghana, information transfer, ivory coast, mali, mauritania, national level, niger, nigeria, programmes, recommendations, togo, training |
| Abstract | The Peace Corps Guinea Worm Eradication Program begun in 1989 under the USAID Africa Bureau. The guinea worm is a parasite transmitted by water fleas, which are ingested by drinking contaminated water. Preventative measures include filtering water through cloth or nylon, protecting water sources and chemical control. Since the Peace Corps Volunteers work on a village level, it was decided that the Guinea Worm Eradication Program was appropriate for their administration. Eleven countries participated in the programme. This report outlines the methodology of the program, training aids and their effectiveness, and participation by volunteers and APCDs. Conclusions and recommendations are given for each participating country, most of which are in West Africa. The community-based, person-to-person communication was found to be effective, and the combination of health education and safe water supply was responsible for significantly more reduction in the disease than either factor alone. The strategy was country-specific, while the monitoring and programme support was global. |
| Notes | 47 ref. |
| Custom 1 | 245.3, 824 |
