ALERT-INDIA (Association for Leprosy Education, Rehabilitation and Treatment – India) is engaged in leprosy control efforts in urban and rural areas of Maharashtra since 1981.  ALERT-INDIA also works for other disease control programmes such as Tuberculosis (TB), HIV/AIDS as well as community health in close collaboration with national disease control programmes.

Development of a new strategy for leprosy control

Since its inception, ALERT-INDIA primarily focuses on leprosy control through community partnership strategies in line with government priorities under National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP). Much progress has been made in the lives of several people affected by leprosy and their social and economic development. These achievements have prompted the Government of India to integrate leprosy services into the general health care system as a policy and announcement of achieving the goal of leprosy elimination at national level in December 2005 has created a setback and hardship to consolidate the gains made since 1991.

In response to this challenge,ALERT-INDIA developed and launched a “Leprosy Elimination Action Programme” (LEAP) as a new strategy to sustain the leprosy control and to strengthen the integration process in alliance with multiple stakeholders.  The overall objective of LEAP strategy is to “Promote right to health and social status of persons affected by leprosy with sustained leprosy control measures and improve accessibility for quality care in general health care system”. The strategy also demonstrates ALERT-INDIA’s commitment to promote rights to health of persons affected by leprosy. 

Strategic interventions of LEAP

LEAP interventions provide strategic directions and approaches to improve the health outcomes for persons affected by leprosy.  Specific districts in Maharashtra state of India were identified to implement LEAP where the disease burden is significantly higher than the national level and the public health services are weak. An operational plan for LEAP interventions is developed to ensure an effective coverage with reference to district to achieve measurable impact over a period of time.

The four specific interventions of LEAP are as follows:

1.        Selective Special Drives (SSD) to promote early case detection

Approach: ALERT-INDIA trained and involved community members and groups as volunteers to create awareness about leprosy among the community and school children through house-to-house campaigns using a variety of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) tools to promote self reporting of leprosy suspects for diagnosis at early stage that helps to reduce the disease transmission and morbidity thereby minimize the stigma and discrimination against leprosy.