Sharing essential knowledge with health researchers and policy makers

Communities of practice

TV films will highlight neglected diseases

7 Oct 2008

Paul Chinnock

From the BBC Survival film on NTDs.

An eight-part documentary series from BBC World will provide an insight into how some of the world’s biggest killers – TB/HIV, malaria, childhood diseases, sleeping sickness, worms, poor maternal health and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) – affect the poorest communities in developing countries. The series, entitled Survival, will demonstrate how communities are responding and explore solutions.

The films go beyond statistics to place the diseases in their community context. For example, the NTDs film focuses on follows the ambitious Mass Drug Administration programme which aims to eradicate these diseases in the next five years but it highlights the role of Ali Balla, a farmer from Niger, who has been chosen to distribute drugs in his village. Ali is one of 17,000 community distributors entrusted to dispense drugs for common NTDs to people in local villages and nomadic communities in Niger.

It is unusual to see these disease dealt with at all on television. For there to be a whole series of high-quality international programmes is nothing short of remarkable. The decision to highlight on individuals and communities affected adds to the impact. More information, including downloadable fact sheets are available on the Survival website.

The schedule for the showing of the films on BBC World is as follows:

4 October – Neglected tropical diseases

11 October – Sleeping sickness

18 October – Malaria

25 October – Maternal health

8 November – Child survival

15 November – HIV/TB

22 November – Acute respiratory infections

29 November – Worms

29 November – Health debate in the studio.

Each documentary will also be viewable on-line as soon as the BBC transmits it. Five-minute versions of the documentaries are already available on line and can be viewed below.