A/Professor Liesl Zühlke Takes Up Role as President of Reach

A/Prof Liesl Zühlke took up the role of President of Reach during her visit to Geneva, Switzerland for the 71st World Health Assembly in May 2018. Reach is a technical support and policy translation initiative aimed at amplifying Rheumatic Heart Disease control efforts locally, regionally and globally. The initiative’s primary goal is to identify, describe and disseminate solutions for this neglected disease and to reduce burden on vulnerable populations around the world. As a collaborative organisation, they partner with a broad range of stakeholders - including clinicians, other disease communities, academics, funders, governments, industry and people living with RHD. 

A/Prof Zühlke feels passionately that Rheumatic Heart Disease, a preventable chronic disease of childhood, can be controlled in developing countries using a multi-pronged approach. She urges that global control of Rheumatic Fever and Rheumatic Heart Disease is eminently achievable and notes that comprehensive register-based programmes have already effectively reduced the burden of RF/RHD at a reasonable cost in disparate geographic settings.