Follow-up information from National Summit on Neglected Infections of Poverty, 27 October 2009

[Guest guest]

FYI....

In particular, see info in red below.

Good afternoon,

We are writing to follow up with you regarding the National Summit on Neglected Infections of Poverty held October 27 in Washington DC.

We are sorry you were unable to attend the Summit. We would like to keep you informed of developments. Overall, the Summit was a success. The following captures salient points:

Presentations were of high quality with a high degree of helpful synergy

Dialogue through the Summit was rich and engaging

The congressmen’s participation was a crucial contribution (see below)

Those in attendance were active participants and interested in post-Summit efforts

The Summit successfully raised awareness of issues surrounding Neglected Infections of Poverty

We were especially pleased to see attention brought to this neglected, yet highly important issue by Summit speakers Congressman Gene Green (D-TX) and Congressman Hank (D-GA), who discussed their amendment to the House healthcare bill HR 3692 (the amendment is section 2587, page 1609).

In addition, PBS did a piece on Neglected Infections of Poverty the day of the Summit which can be found at: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/july-dec09/neglected_10-27.html

Through a rich and engaging dialogue, attendees at the Summit participated in a discussion of planning for future efforts on neglected infections of poverty. From this we have established several potential work groups. You can join one of the following groups by sending an email to Lydia DiGrazia, mtmlmd@..., or to neglectedinfectionsofpoverty@..., indicating your interests:

· Outreach (mobilizing communities, messaging, and education of doctors and nurses)

· Economic burden assessment research

· Data collection, surveillance, epidemiology, and mapping

· Research and development/basic science

We will be uploading the Summit’s exciting Power Point presentations to the Summit website for your reference shortly. Additionally, we will continue to update our site to include the latest news and information surrounding the discourse on neglected infections of poverty. The websites’ address is: https://inside.gwumc.edu/niops/

Again, we appreciate your interest in Neglected Infections of Poverty. Please do not hesitate to contact the planning committee should you have any questions about our work

Sincerely,

National Summit on Neglected Infections of Poverty Planning Committee