The MCHIP team was busy at USAID's mini-university making key presentations on diarrhea, immunization and integration. Here you can find brief summaries and copies of presentations.
 
Finishing the Diarrhea Business; Serge Raharison
Participant’s learned about the who, what, when, where and why’s of this serious matter and its deadly effect on children under the age of five. The presenter discussed the most vulnerable populations and geographic locations, and the importance of implementing effective lifesaving treatment plans such as Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT).  Participants also learned how to prevent these unnecessary deaths by using cost saving measures such as routine vaccinations and improvement in sanitation, as well as government agencies implementing strategic healthcare policies and Integrated Community Case Management (ICCM).

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Smart Integration: What? Why? When? How?; Elaine Charurat & Chelsea Cooper
This presentation covered the relevance of integrating Maternal, Newborn, Child Health and Family Planning (MNCH-FP) strategies, while citing work in various countries such as Kenya and Tanzania. The presenters discussed the practical applications of integrating services, management, systems, and tools to produce positive outcomes in the prevention and reduction of newborn mortality and low birth weight, and transmission of HIV infection from mother to child (PMTCT), we well as proper planning in sustaining maternal and child nutrition. The presenters also discussed integration of facility and community programs, ways to boost child health immunity, and concluded the presentation by having people break into small working groups to discuss all of the integration techniques.

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Routine Immunization: Anything but Routine for Child Health; Michel Othepa & Linda Banda
The presenters provided information on the major killers of children in developing countries, effective methods used to save children’s lives through new, traditional, and older vaccines, and provided a brief cost analysis of implementing Routine Immunization (RI) services. Participants learned about the importance of establishing a sustainable immunization system, and about the challenges developing countries face in sustaining RI, such as capacity building, cold chain and logistics, and funding (amongst other obstacles). The presenters also highlighted the work that organizations and agencies, such as the GAVI Alliance and traditional EPI partners are undertaking in order to strengthen immunization systems in developing countries. The session concluded by having people brainstorm ideas on how to present a new vaccine to a country and strengthen existing RI systems.

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