Rapid Diagnostic Tests

Malaria Consortium’s Pioneer Project, funded by the UK charity Comic Relief, is training health workers in Uganda to diagnose accurately and quickly malaria in patients using RDTs.

RDTs confirm the presence of the malaria parasite in minutes, allowing health workers to prescribe the correct drug for the right condition, without having to wait for a blood test using microscopy.

There are still hurdles to overcome, however, with patients at times reluctant to trust the diagnosis of RDTs, particularly if they are told it is not malaria.

Malaria Consortium’s Pioneer project continues to strengthen the awareness and understanding of RDTs and to support government strategies, recruitment and training for effective health service delivery.