Trachoma is a potentially blinding neglected tropical disease ( #NTD). However, it can be treated. Follow the journey of a trachoma treatment, from your donation all the way to a community in Zimbabwe where it will help protect people from this painful disease
. #EndTheNeglect

Since 1990, @Pfizer has donated over 900 million #trachoma treatments, manufactured in #PuertoRico and #Italy. The medicine then travels thousands of miles by air, truck, motorcycle and even foot, to reach its destination
. #EndTheNeglect #beatNTDs

Smartphone technology is used to carry out #trachoma surveys. These surveys help ministries of health to know if trachoma is endemic and where to do begin treatment programms
. #TropicalData #EndTheNeglect #WorldNTDDay

When a country has confirmed that trachoma is endemic, @ITIatlanta help arrange shipment of the treatments. They travel from the manufacturing countries to @Pfizer's European Logistics Centre in Belgium, from where they are shipped to endemic countries
. #WorldNTDDay

The #trachoma treatments arrive in Zimbabwe
. #Sightsavers first supported efforts to #EndTrachoma here in 2014, when 1/4 of the population were at risk of the disease. Thanks to the Accelerate programme, we helped distribute 1.2 million treatments in 2019. #EndTheNeglect

Before it can be distributed to the communities, the treatments first go to various storage facilities, and then to district pharmacies and local clinics
. This can be a bumpy ride, depending on the season. #EndTheNeglect #WorldNTDDay

The need for trachoma treatment is often the greatest in remote communities. They can be hard to access, especially during rainy seasons when roads are damaged and bridges washed away. Health workers may end up having to carry the treatment by foot
. #EndTheNeglect #beatNTDs
