This information collection system was made possible by funds collected during the 5th annual IT Cup football tournament, June 28th 2008 at Clairefontaine, near Paris. On April 9th 2009, for the official inauguration of the project, a football tournament was organised between the children of the Maela refugee camp (population 45,000), thus launching the IT Cup tournament, 2009.
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SMRU is an extension of the Mahidol University of Tropical Medicine in Bangkok and is a member of the Mahidol-Oxford research unit (MORU) funded by the Welcome Trust (GB). SMRU manages 3 laboratories and 6 health clinics specialised in the monitoring and treatment of malaria, with special attention accorded to pregnant women, among those most vulnerable. Created over 20 years ago, the SMRU offers health services to over 30,000 people each year. Their pertinent Malaria related research is often published and can benefit people affected by Malaria throughout South East Asia. 300,000 Burmese refugees are reported to live in camps in Thailand.
As Jean-François Cazenave, TSF's president, points out: “Malaria is among the worst scourges that exist—killing over one million people each year. Worldwide, a child dies of this disease every 30 seconds! The parasite responsible develops resistance to treatment, this being the case along the Thai border, where thousands of Burmese refugees are treated in the clinics of the SMRU. Pregnant women and children are the most vulnerable. It’s in this zone that IT Cup and TSF, together thanks to corporate sponsors, contribute to the protection of those who give life.”
The program aims at putting in place a system of information management at the clinics of the SMRU and reinforcing the capacity of health care providers, so that they can better meet the needs of growing refugee populations, particularly those most vulnerable—pregnant women and young children.
A computerised system is particularly valued by the personnel of the SMRU. Previously, all information pertaining to patients was noted on paper, with as many as 30 different forms per case.
In March 2009, after developing the first version of the application, the system was first established at the Wang Pha clinic. Then the SMRU personnel were trained in the use of the computerised system. Thanks to the trainings and continuous technical support provided by TSF, the SMRU's staff acquired the skills and know-how required to use and manage the system, which is now implemented at the second clinic. In June 2010, after several months of work on the application to develop improved versions, the system was installed at the Maw Ker Thai clinic. In April 2011, the last version was installed at the Wang Pha and Maw Ker Thai clinics as well as at the SMRU research centre. It is planned to migrate the system to the other clinics.
The transition from papers to computers demands a reorganisation of the clinics and personnel. It has been decided to drop paper recording in the coming weeks.
Karim Mokhnachi, IT Cup President, stated that : “Thanks to the know-how of Télécoms Sans Frontières and to funds from IT CUP, TSF and the SMRU teams have put in place a system of information management where data is collected at each centre and sent automatically to a central server. The objective being to collect a data bank rich with epidemiologic information. IT Cup is proud to have contributed to the fight against this disease, which continues to kill millions worldwide.”
The computerised data base allows health care staff easier access to their data and helps them save time and avoid transmission errors. With this system, health workers can directly access their patients’ files and history, and share important information with other centres.
The 6th IT Cup tournament took place June 28th 2009 at Clairefontaine, to again raise money for the TSF cooperation programs as well as to benefit a French association, “Nos quartiers ont des talents.”
To participate, register on www.itcup.org.