ISGlobal Strengthens Its Research in Bolivia

ISGlobal's commitment to improving the quality of life of Bolivia's most vulnerable populations is being strengthened with two new collaboration agreements aimed at addressing the region's major health challenges.

Research on Chagas and other neglected diseases

In late 2023, ISGlobal's Chagas Initiative and the Integral Nature Health Foundation (SANIT) in Cochabamba, Bolivia, signed a collaboration agreement consolidating their joint work on strengthening, researching, and implementing strategies for Chagas disease and other prevalent neglected diseases in Bolivia.

Currently, joint efforts are focused on 1) innovations in detection, surveillance and monitoring of mother-to-child transmission of Chagas disease, 2) comprehensive management of Chagas disease and its cardiac impact in the Bolivian Chaco region, and 3) perspectives on climate research and social engagement for comprehensive management of vector-borne zoonotic diseases in the Bolivian Chaco.

With this new five-year strategic agreement, ISGlobal and the SANIT Foundation aim to expand their activities to other areas of the region, leveraging their expertise and capacity with local partners to improve the health of vulnerable populations.

Cardiovascular care and strengthening health network

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Bolivia, a country which also has the highest prevalence of Chagas disease in the world. To strengthen the response to this problem, ISGlobal and Novartis will establish a reference centre for cardiovascular care in the municipality of Yacuiba, strengthening the health network in the Bolivian Gran Chaco, an area with a population vulnerable to these diseases and where cardiovascular complications are the main cause of mortality and morbidity among people affected by Chagas.

This project, in collaboration with the SANIT Foundation and the Bolivian National Health System, aims to be sustainable through 1) the implementation of a protocolized model of comprehensive care for people affected by cardiovascular diseases, including Chagas, 2) capacity building according to an integrated management model, 3) support for health programme management focused on improving referral pathways between different levels of the health network, and 4) promotion of research capacity.