Meeting the Moment
Browse our 2020 Annual Report Now
From the desk of Leslie Mancuso, President & CEO
At a time of crisis, Jhpiego responds with agility, speed and skill
A lethal virus. Unprecedented disruption. Heartbreaking loss. Resilience in the face of incredible challenges. Can the past year be described any other way? The novel coronavirus traveled swiftly and stealthily across oceans and borders, sickening millions in the countries where we work and intensifying in force as health systems suffered its blows. The pandemic tested us as we had never been tested before. And yet, Jhpiego’s global teams braved this extraordinary crisis with a fierce hope and the inspired belief that they could positively impact the lives of the people we serve.
Marshaling Jhpiego’s hallmark innovative spirit and creativity, our teams deftly pivoted to reimagine delivery of essential health care services during a pandemic in new and virtual ways. They adapted resources and realigned services to meet the unique needs of ministries of health and update the skills of tens of thousands of health care workers. With the support of private sector allies, Jhpiego responded to new challenges with agility and skill. And they continue to do so today as vaccines reach our country partners.
While I am heartsick at the loss of loved ones and frontline health workers, I remain uplifted by the remarkable progress and unwavering commitment of our colleagues and partners worldwide. From the community health worker in rural India who promotes handwashing in villages to the immunization experts strategizing on worldwide delivery of a vaccine, the global health community overcame unforeseen obstacles with courage and resilience.
From the very start of the pandemic, our goal has been twofold: to prevent, detect and respond to outbreaks while maintaining the high-quality health care services required for all women, men and families to grow and thrive. In more than a dozen countries in Africa and Asia, pregnant women and mothers received COVID-19-targeted education for a safe birth and healthy child, strengthened antenatal care, HIV and family planning services, support in accessing health facilities and continued delivery of medicine for the prevention and treatment of malaria.
In India, through the Jhpiego-led NISHTHA: Transforming Comprehensive Healthcare project, we remotely bolstered the skills of health care workers to prevent and control infections, organized COVID-19 testing and contact tracing efforts, and designed a data-driven intelligence engine to direct government action where it was needed most.
When closures shuttered our HIV prevention and voluntary medical male circumcision services in Lesotho, Jhpiego nurses didn’t stop—they deployed to local hospitals and health clinics to diagnose and care for COVID-19 patients. In South Africa, our staff participated in frontline testing and treatment services and ramped up telementoring to provide timely and critical assistance to health facility staff. They also arranged home delivery of HIV medicines to maintain the health of vulnerable clients.
Jhpiego expanded the ability of health care providers and systems in Afghanistan, India, Lesotho and Kenya to care for clients severely ill because of COVID-19 with medical equipment donated by the U.S. Agency for International Development. This initiative strengthened health workers’ skills, innovated bedside teleconsultations and established protocols for sustained delivery of oxygen.
Moved by the need in our very own city, Jhpiego also launched its first-ever program in the United States, developing a contact tracing and jobs initiative alongside the Baltimore City Health Department, The Rockefeller Foundation, Johns Hopkins University and others. It was incredibly inspiring to apply the knowledge and experience of our years working to prevent infectious diseases on distant shores right here at home.
From the harrowing early days of the pandemic through the devastating rollcall of deaths to today’s surges amid the promise of renewed health, Jhpiego couldn’t have accomplished all that we have without you. We are energized by your trust, unwavering support and belief in our mission to ensure that every person has access to high-quality health services—before, during and after a health crisis.
I am incredibly proud of our team’s transformative thinking, deft response and, above all, commitment to the people we serve. This extraordinary year reaffirms my belief that, together, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish.
Most sincerely,
Leslie Mancuso, PhD, RN, FAAN
President and CEO
In 2020, Jhpiego supported pandemic preparedness and continued delivering essential health services.
Jhpiego Responds Around the Globe
When COVID-19 hit, Jhpiego moved swiftly to provide our country partners with the skills and resources they needed to meet the demands of the virus. With funding from 47 donors and in collaboration with more than 35 governments, we built on past progress and tailored our assistance to help ministries of health and others strategize and map their COVID-19 response. Never before has our mission to ensure equitable, accessible and respectful health care for all been so critical.
Through lockdowns, restrictions and virus surges, our global staff of 3,347 innovated in ways that didn’t seem possible before and reached thousands with essential and lifesaving health care.
From rural Mozambique to the urban centers of Afghanistan, Jhpiego teams advised policymakers and helped shape national plans to prevent the spread of COVID-19. We worked with health facilities and within communities to strengthen infection prevention and control approaches; educated and prepared health care providers to identify, diagnose and manage cases of COVID-19; provided critical health and safety equipment for health workers; and leveraged technology and data to expand access to appropriate, equitable and quality services.
Alongside our direct response to COVID-19, we worked tirelessly to maintain hard-won progress toward cervical cancer elimination and against maternal, newborn and child mortality, and in support of HIV and malaria preventive care and treatment.
Read more in our 2020 Annual ReportThe Baltimore Health Corps Initiative
For the first time in our history, and with support from high-profile donors such as The Rockefeller Foundation, Jhpiego joined the Baltimore City Health Department, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and other partners to develop a coordinated response to a health emergency right here at home.
Having mainstreamed contact tracing as a best practice in eight countries where we have implemented HIV testing and tuberculosis services, Jhpiego launched its first-ever U.S. program during the summer of 2020. Working with local partners, we applied our longstanding global expertise to support effective case investigation and contact tracing in Baltimore to detect, prevent and stop the spread of COVID-19 in vulnerable communities as part of a unique jobs and health initiative. The project, which sought to employ Baltimore residents who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, hired nearly 300 people. As vaccines became available, the Baltimore Health Corps evolved to include mobile vaccination units and coordinated efforts to link city residents to necessary services.
Read the entire 2020 Annual Report
