Processes and challenges: how the Sri Lankan health system managed the integration of leprosy services

At the end of 1999, the Ministry of Health in Sri Lanka took the bold decision to integrate its Leprosy Services within the country's general health system. The integration was completed in February 2001 and is already starting to bear fruit, but implementing the necessary changes has been a challenging task. Many new procedures had to be established, logistics improved, attitudes changed and health workers trained. A broad bridge between curative and preventative health services needed to be built. Integration efforts were supported by an advertising campaign to inform people that leprosy, like any other illness, can be treated at all health facilities. Contrary to the expectation that quality of service would drop following integration, more cases are now detected and an extensive network of government doctors is able to diagnose, treat and manage leprosy patients more efficiently. Prevalence has increased by 36% and the new case load by 41%. A few areas still need more attention, such as integrating MDT supplies within existing systems and improving the flow of information, but nonetheless the ownership of leprosy is shifting rapidly to local health services.