Our Approach
GMA is working with the International Headache Society, Duke Global Health Institute, and other organizations to perform the following:
- Training and Education:
Local healthcare providers with little or no formal education about migraine diagnosis or treatment are the front-line resource for those who suffer migraines in LMIC countries. Our only chance to help them help those who suffer is through mentorship, education, and training appropriate to their backgrounds and the communities they serve.
- Medication:
Only with effective access to proper migraine medications can this initiative make a difference. Providing migraine medication to LMICs will initially focus on philanthropic support aimed at providing free-of-charge sumatriptan, the only migraine drug currently included in the essential medications list of the World Health Organization. We are already working with local manufacturers and/or non-governmental organizations to negotiate the lowest possible price of delivering sumatriptan that meets strict quality standards.
- Analyze Results, Improve, and Expand:
We intend to use Dimagi's CommCare software to gather the data and conduct a cost-benefit analysis from each pilot study, making our findings published and public as we work with our local partners, Duke Global Health Institute, and the International Headache Society, to improve our solutions as we move forward.
Inaugural Program
Kenya:
GMA is on target to start its mentorship, education, and training programs in Q1 2025, and its pilot project with the generic migraine medication sumatriptan in Q2 2025.
In Kenya, our education and training will help clinical officers and nurses diagnose and treat migraine headache correctly, using sumatriptan and other non-migraine-specific medications available to them. Through our partnership with the Addis Clinic and the Catholic Health Department of Kenya (Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops and Community Health Impact Coalition), we intend to reach clinical officers and nurses in all counties of Kenya and deliver CME-approved education.
Second Program
The Philippines:
GMA is on target to start its mentorship, education, and training programs in Q3 2025, and its pilot project with the generic migraine medication sumatriptan in Q4 2025.
In the Philippines, we will increase access to headache care by supporting midwives, pharmacists, and community health workers with a training program tailored to their educational background, the amount of time they spend with patients who seek help with headache, and the attitude of the people in the community they serve toward medications. Collaborating with a dedicated group of Philippine headache specialists, we aim to reach healthcare providers throughout the country.
