The Union and its partners in SORT IT (Structured Operational Research and Training Initiative) completed its first three-module operational research course focused on multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in Estonia last month. The participants, who came from eight Eastern European countries, conducted studies resulting in 11 papers on MDR- and XDR-TB that have now been submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Because they are closely linked by content and region, SORT IT organisers hope that the papers will be accepted for publication in a supplement produced in both English and Russian.
All of the countries represented -- Estonia, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia -- are among the 27 countries with the highest burden of MDR-TB globally.
“This is a perfect example of a situation where operational research can help countries define where their specific problems are and use their own data and systems to develop improved policies and practices,” says Prof A.D. Harries, Director of The Union’s Centre for Operational Research.
The World Health Organization’s Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (WHO/TDR) and the WHO Regional Office for the European Region were the leads for this SORT IT Programme , which also received technical support from: the Operational Research Unit (LUXOR), Médecins Sans Frontières, Brussels Operational Center, Luxembourg; the Centre for Operational Research, International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, France; and The Union South-East Asia Office, New Delhi, India.
This SORT IT programme was supported by the WHO Country Office in Estonia and the Estonia National Institute for Health and Development.