Professor François Nosten, Director of the Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU); Dr Pitakpong Chandang, Tak Provincial Chief Medical Officer; and Dr Sutha Phatrakitrungruang, Director of Mae Ramat Hospital, signed a MoU on co-operation for the development of infectious disease prevention and control along the Tak border area. The signing ceremony took place in the meeting room of the Primary Care Unit building in Mae Ramat District, Tak Province.
The University of Oxford and the Tak Provincial Public Health Office intend to develop a collaboration for the prevention and control of infectious diseases in the border area of Tak Province. This work will take place under the MoU between Mae Ramat Hospital and SMRU, a unit operated by the University of Oxford.
The collaboration will focus on the epidemiology, clinical presentation, and laboratory investigations of infectious diseases. It will be jointly conducted by Mae Ramat Hospital and SMRU. The aim is to improve the control of major infectious diseases affecting the border population, including (but not limited to) tuberculosis, respiratory pathogens, HIV, malaria, hepatitis B, melioidosis, rickettsiosis, dengue, intestinal parasites, and emerging infectious diseases.
This initiative will include studies on epidemiology, diagnostics, treatment and prevention strategies, and will align with the objectives of the Mahidol–Oxford Tropical Health Network.