René Labusquiere (26 September 1919 – 22 September 1977) was a French doctor who pioneered and led the implementation of preventive medicine to combat tropical diseases in Central and West Africa. He was the first Secretary-General of the Organization for Cooperation in the Fight against Major Endemic Diseases in Central Africa (l'OCEAC)
and an officer of the
Troupes de marine.
Career
From 1946 to 1954, Labusquiere lived in
French Cameroon
French Cameroon, also known as the French Cameroons (), was a French mandate territory in Central Africa. It now forms part of the independent country of Cameroon.
Eastern part of the former German colony of Cameroon (). Its status, from ...
and
Ubangi-Shari
Ubangi-Shari () was a French colonial empire, French colony in central Africa, a part of French Equatorial Africa. It was named after the Ubangi River, Ubangi and Chari River, Chari rivers of the Central African Republic, rivers along which it w ...
. During this time in Africa, he participated in a mobile bush doctor program with a focus on combating tropical diseases. As a result of this experience, Labusquiere became interested in
leprosy
Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...
and enrolled in training programs on leprosy treatment in
Guyana
Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
and
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
.
Labusquiere was later appointed head of the Department of Mobile General Hygiene and Prophylaxis in
Dakar
Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...
,
Senegal
Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...
. In this position he travelled throughout
Francophone
The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...
West Africa
West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...
treating leprosy patients in remote villages. During this time he pioneered innovations relating to both early detection and mass treatment.
Following the
decolonisation of French Africa, newly independent countries sought to implement
preventive medicine
Preventive healthcare, or prophylaxis, is the application of healthcare measures to prevent diseases.Hugh R. Leavell and E. Gurney Clark as "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical and mental health a ...
policies. Given the countries' limited resources and the distribution and density of the population, such policies were more effective than treatment. During this time, Labesquiere was appointed as the head of the Department of Endemic Diseases of
Upper Volta. Four years later, Labesquiere created and headed a successor department: the Department of Rural Medicine and Endemic Diseases. The new department used methods in line with those of international organisations, including the
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...
and
United States Agency for International Development
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance.
Established in 1961 and reorganized in 1998 ...
. The new department embarked on a major
measles vaccination
Measles vaccine protects against becoming infected with measles. Nearly all of those who do not develop immunity after a single dose develop it after a second dose. When the rate of vaccination within a population is greater than 92%, outbreaks ...
campaign.
In 1964, the Ministers of Health of
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...
, the
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo), is a country located on the western coast of Central ...
,
Gabon
Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...
, the
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...
and
Chad
Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...
established the Organization of Coordination for the Fight against Endemic Diseases in Central Africa (''Organisation de Coordination pour la lutte contre les Endémies en Afrique Centrale (l'OCEAC)''). Labusquiere was appointed as the inaugural Secretary-General of this organization. Using international cooperation and funds, the organization advocated for major health campaigns and researched and developed diagnosis and treatment techniques tailored for large populations.
In 1970, Labusquiere published the book ''Santé Rurale et Médecine Préventive en Afrique Noire (Rural Health and Preventive Medicine in Black Africa)'', among other works.
In 1974, Labusquiere was involved in disproving the effectiveness of the colonial preventative medical practice of 'lomidinisation', which he himself had participated in. After publicly denouncing the injections as "useless, dangerous, and therefore uselessly dangerous," official histories of colonial medicine generally omitted this failed 1950s program.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Labusquiere, Rene
1919 births
1977 deaths
French medical researchers
French tropical physicians