Partners In Health

After the Soviet Union’s collapse, a rapid increase in Russia’s incarceration rate combined with the deterioration of its tuberculosis care and control systems led to an outbreak of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). In response, Eli Lilly and Company, understanding that the problem was too complex to be tackled by one company alone, established the MDR-TB Partnership, investing $135 million into a public-private affiliation of twenty-two organizations dedicated to eradicating MDR-TB. In 2001, in collaboration with this partnership, Partners In Health (PIH) assumed primary clinical responsibility for the first on-the-ground MDR-TB project in Russia.

PARTNERS IN HEALTHClinicians in Russia work on laboratory results for MDR-TB patients.  The Lilly-PIH Partnership has enabled PIH to conduct groundbreaking research and provide treatment to thousands of patients.

PIH is known for providing high-quality care to the poorest of the poor, and Eli Lilly is renowned for its innovative medicines. Together, they work to combat MDR-TB throughout all 89 regions of Russia. PIH has trained TB doctors, nurses, and community health workers; equipped laboratories; and provided medications, director-observed therapy, and social support to patients in both the prison and civilian sectors. To date, the project has enrolled over 1,500 patients for treatment and offered social support services to nearly 4,000. PIH conducts and oversees the diagnoses, enrollment, case evaluation, and management of thousands of patients and provides financial oversight of all project components.

With Lilly’s financial support, PIH has provided training in MDR-TB treatment to 90% of all TB providers in Russia. Consequently, the program has succeeded in reducing MDR-TB treatment default rates from 29% in 2001 to less than 11% today.

The Lilly-PIH partnership has become internationally recognized for its comprehensive, practical, and evidence-based approach to preventing, diagnosing, and treating MDR-TB. These efforts have helped thousands of patients receive comprehensive care and successfully complete their TB treatment. Collaborations with the Ministry of Health and the Moscow Medical Academy, among others, have led to the standardization of treatment regimes, clinical management, and detection practices.

The Lilly-PIH partnership has also enabled PIH to conduct groundbreaking research, advocate for improved national and international policies, and train physicians, nurses, and community health workers from not only Russia, but also other former Soviet Union states and West Asia, where the burden of TB is among the highest in the world.

Learn more about PIH's work on Tuberculosis and MDR-TB »