New York, USA – Global public health leaders came together yesterday to celebrate the official launch of Vital Strategies, a public health nonprofit organization with global reach whose world-class experts support government action in responding to complex health problems, especially in low- and middle-income cities and countries.
In an event hosted by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Vital Strategies’ leadership outlined how the organization employs its expertise in communication, epidemiology, research and advocacy to tackle public health issues and promote best practice policies around the world.
Vital Strategies focuses on five program areas in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies including Tobacco Control, Road Safety, Maternal Health, Obesity Prevention and Data Systems Strengthening. A sixth program area – a clinical trial to evaluate the effectiveness of shorter drug treatment regimens for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis – is supported by the United States Agency for International Development.
Vital Strategies grew out of the recent joining of World Lung Foundation and The Union North America, combining the specific expertise of each organization in order to effect lasting change in lung disease, its legacy issue, and in critical companion areas of public health.
Highlights of Vital Strategies’ work includes:
- Assisting countries to reach 2 billion people with over 160 media campaigns that address tobacco use and have helped influence strong laws and smoking bans in places like Beijing, Russia, Vietnam and Turkey;
- Helping countries and cities mount social media campaigns like the one we launched this week in Bandung, Indonesia to urge motorcyclists to wear helmets properly as motorbike crashes, due to improper wearing, cause significant injury and death;
- A Multidrug Resistant Treat TB clinical trial, which is attempting to shorten the course of drug resistant Tuberculosis treatment from 24 to six months, reducing the time it takes for patients to be cured;
- An ongoing maternal health project in Tanzania that has helped to reduce maternal and neonatal deaths by improving facilities, increasing facility delivery and training more than 100 non-physician clinicians to deliver emergency obstetric care, including C-sections, where doctors are not readily available, and by encouraging women to deliver in health facilities rather than at home so they can expert care if needed;
- An advocacy effort in Mexico that led to a 10 percent tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and junk food to discourage consumption in a country that faces an obesity epidemic; and
- An initiative to improve civil registration and vital statistics systems in 18 countries to better monitor causes of death and create data-driven public health policies.
“Vital Strategies is such a strong partner that we collaborate with them in five of our six primary issue areas. I know that Vital Strategies will continue to make a huge difference in its new form, and I look forward to continuing our fruitful partnership,” said Dr. Kelly Henning, the head of Public Health Programs at Bloomberg Philanthropies.
“Leveraging the success of our predecessors, World Lung Foundation and The Union North America, we joined together under our Vital Strategies brand to better articulate our expanding ability to tackle the most pressing health issues of our time,” said José Luis Castro, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vital Strategies. “We look forward to building on that success to help change the course of health and well-being for entire populations in countries where we work.”
About Vital Strategies
Vital Strategies envisions a world where every person is protected by a strong public health system. Our team combines evidence-based strategies with innovation to help develop sound public health policies, manage programs efficiently, strengthen data systems, conduct research, and design strategic communication campaigns for policy and behavior change.
To find out more, please visit vitalstrategies.org or Twitter @VitalStrat
For further information or to arrange an interview with a Vital Strategies public health and data expert, please contact Jon Steed, Vital Strategies, at +1.917.710.2846 or jsteed@vitalstrategies.org