Reducing Disability

Our progress towards reducing disability

Between 2019-2024, TLM has supported thousands of leprosy complication management and rehabilitation services, provided primarily through 17 TLM hospitals in Bangladesh, India and Nepal; and to some extent through our 13 partner hospitals in Chad, DR Congo, Myanmar, Niger and Nigeria. Groundbreaking surgical and wound healing techniques and rehabilitation services have been researched and made available to our clients.

The Leprosy Mission has trained doctors, surgeons, nurses, and rehabilitation staff in several countries including Ethiopia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Timor-Leste in the management of leprosy complications.

Three disability victories from the

Global Strategy 2019-2024

In 2019, we committed to increase our focus on the inner wellbeing of persons affected by leprosy, to research leprosy reactions, and to address leprosy ulcers. Here are some victories from these efforts over the last five years.

A revolutionary new ulcer treatment

Around 20 percent of leprosy patients will have an ulcer, often leading to extended hospital stays. For decades, ulcer treatment has not moved on. However, over the course of this strategy, TLM has developed and rolled out a new treatment called L-PRF (Leukocyte Platelet-Rich Fibrin). This new treatment sees ulcers dressed with a gel made from a patients’ white blood cells and stem cells. It has improved patient outcomes and led to shorter hospital stays. The team behind this has travelled across the world to teach the technique to other doctors. This is just one of many ulcer innovations thanks to the RIGHT project. Read more about this innovation here >

2. Investing in mental wellbeing

Under the 2019-2024 strategy, TLM took huge strides under a newly established working group on inner wellbeing. Their approach is well summed up in this 5-point manifesto for leprosy’s mental health crisis. We have increased training for our frontline staff so they are equipped to support patients with basic counselling and make referrals for support from therapists. We have also invested in mental health research in Nigeria, DR Congo, India, and elsewhere.

Access to reaction management services remains limited in the Government Health services. Our hospitals are busy treating reaction. We also train health workers, community volunteers and persons with lived experience of leprosy to recognise the signs of reaction. M-Health tools (using mobile phones) are increasingly being used both for accessing remote patients and for supporting organisations of persons affected. We continue to seek more effective anti-reaction drugs with fewer side effects through several multi-country research partnerships – including the Methotrexate and Prednisolone Study and the Extra-Clofazimine Study .

TLM Myanmar staff and victims of the Myanmar's earthquake meeting during the holiday period.

3. Improving the management of leprosy reaction

Enock was getting fevers at least once a month – strong signs of type II reactions.

One for the future

We recognise that innovative treatments for leprosy complications are not reaching every community. In the years to come, we will work together with ILEP, WHO and others to improve access to quality, sustainable services for leprosy complications – particularly leprosy reactions. We seek to improve the coverage of health and rehabilitation services essential to persons affected by leprosy – both by expanding our own work and by removing barriers to general health and rehabilitation services.