Global Health News
|
|
December 2011 |
World AIDS Day 2011
| | On December 1, USAID joins the global community to pay tribute to the 34 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide and reaffirms its commitment to helping those in need.
| |
| | | |
 |
|
HIV/AIDS Timeline
This year, as the Agency reflects on 30 years since the discovery of AIDS and celebrates its 50th anniversary, we look back at our strong network of HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs to see just how far we’ve come since the early years when we began our global efforts – establishing our first AIDS program and embarking on our long mission to fight the disease.
|
 |
Battling an Epidemic
In the early 1980s, HIV/AIDS was a new public health concern. Thirty years after the first cases were detected, the disease remains one of the planet’s most compelling global health challenges. Over nearly three decades, USAID has built a network of HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs and is continuing to use all tools available to help countries combat and manage the crisis.
USAID has been on the forefront of the HIV epidemic for more than 25 years, working to save lives while consistently pushing for greater sustainability, strengthened capacity, and innovation – all major hallmarks of the Agency since its inception 50 years ago.
|
Hillary Clinton Calls for an AIDS-Free Generation
On November 8, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called on the world to join the United States in the creation of an AIDS-free generation. This bold vision, as described by the Secretary, will combine the latest scientific advances with proven prevention interventions to eliminate pediatric HIV/AIDS, reduce the risk of HIV infection as children grow from adolescence into adults, and, finally, ensure antiretrovirals – now known to reduce HIV transmission by as much as 96 percent among discordant couples – are available to those who need them.
She noted three key scientific interventions that have been identified as pivotal: preventing mother-to- child transmission, voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC), and treatment as prevention. “When used in combination with each other, condoms and other prevention tools, these interventions offer a historic opportunity to drive down the worldwide rate of new infections,” the Secretary said.
|
World AIDS Day Events
On the morning of December 1, President Obama will speak at “The Beginning of the End of AIDS” event hosted by the ONE Campaign and (RED) at George Washington University. He will be joined by former President George W. Bush and others critical in the global fight against AIDS.
Later in the day, Gayle Smith, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Development and Democracy at the White House, and Ambassador Eric Goosby, U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, will be taking questions on the global AIDS epidemic and what the Obama Administration is doing to bring it to an end.
- What: Open for Questions: The Beginning of the End of AIDS
- Who: Gayle Smith, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Development and Democracy at the White House, and Ambassador Eric Goosby, U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator
- When: Thursday, December 1 at 2:30 p.m. EST
- Where: Watch live at WhiteHouse.gov/live and submit your questions via Facebook, Twitter using the hashtag #WHChat or our webform
On the eve of World AIDS Day, UNAIDS, the DC Community Coalition for AIDS2012 and the Government of the District of Columbia will host “From Local to Global: Finding Common Cause in the AIDS Response” at Union Station. The event will feature a musical performance by Uganda’s Hope for Africa Children’s Choir and remarks from local and global leaders in the AIDS response. Helene Gayle, President and CEO of CARE, will moderate the event. |
|
|
| |
 |
|
HIV/AIDS Public-Private Partnerships
As part of its endeavor to fulfill the need for quality HIV/AIDS services, USAID – in cooperation with the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) – designs and enters into public-private partnerships in developing countries. With more than 20 years of experience in meeting the challenges of the epidemic, USAID understands that efforts against HIV/AIDS must be sustained for true development to exist. Read the full issue brief to learn more about these dynamic partnerships, why HIV/AIDS public-private partnerships make effective development programs, how USAID identifies and sets in motion HIV/AIDS public-private partnerships, and the results we have seen so far.
|
Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision and HIV Prevention
Research has shown that, under the proper circumstances, male circumcision can help men avoid HIV infection. It cannot, however, eliminate the risk entirely. In light of these findings, USAID, in accordance with PEPFAR, promotes a particular type of male circumcision – VMMC – as part of a larger combination HIV-prevention portfolio.
|
The 16th International Conference on HIV/AIDS in Africa
The 16th International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections in Africa (ICASA) will be held December 4, 2011, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The conference will bring together more than 7,000 delegates, including health professionals and scientists on the front lines of the battle against sexually transmitted infections.
|
|
Twitter Expert Hour on on PLoS Medicine’s VMMC Collection
USAID’s Office of HIV/AIDS will be hosting a Twitter expert hour on December 19, 2011, 1 – 2 p.m. EST, on the topic of the newly released PLoS Medicine manuscripts on VMMC. The manuscripts, written by USAID’s Emmanuel Njeuhmeli in collaboration with colleagues from UNAIDS, WHO, and PEPFAR partners, is published in the newest issue of PLoS Medicine, a peer-reviewed open access journal.
The manuscripts – a total of nine – cover a variety of topics related to cost, impact, and the challenges of accelerating scale-up in Southern and Eastern Africa.
Come join the conversation by using the hashtag #VMMC for the expert hour from our @USAIDGH twitter account. To participate, please direct your questions to @USAIDGH and conclude them with the hashtag #VMMC. For example: @USAIDGH Why should we increase voluntary medical male circumcision coverage dramatically? #VMMC.
|
 |
The Female Condom – Safe and Effective
Promoting the female condom is a cost-effective intervention, especially in relation to the cost of HIV treatment and other prevention interventions and when the use of male condoms is not a viable option. The use of a new material for the production of the FC2 reduced the cost of the female condom by one-third, and savings will be even greater as sales increase due to economies of scale. The female condom is the only female-initiated method available that can be worn by women for protection against both unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
|
|
|
| |
 |
|
 |
A Champion of Waste Management
A sanitarian reinforces good waste segregation practices to help prevent medical transmission of HIV and other blood-borne diseases in Ethiopia. Read the full story. [PDF, 98KB]
|
 |
Collecting the Evidence
Protecting the health of millions of people around the globe against HIV/AIDS comes in many forms. Evidence-based decision making is the backbone of effective health policy and treatment. Read the full story. [PDF, 119KB]
|
 |
Giving Birth to New Hope
Through education and empowerment, mothers2mothers prevents infant HIV infection. Read the full story. [PDF, 164KB]
|
 |
Uganda Steps Up Efforts to Assist Families Raising Orphans
USAID, through the FXB, has helped household heads with integrated support networks. Read the full story. [PDF, 289KB]
|
|
|
|
| |
Photo sources for top banner: Narinder Nanu/AFP, Adek Berry/AFP, Jez Aznar/AFP
Read the archived editions of Global Health News.
If you have questions or comments, please contact Chris Thomas at ChThomas@usaid.gov.
To ensure delivery of this newsletter to your inbox, please add ghnews@aimglobalhealth.org to your e-mail address book or safe senders list.
Subscribe | Unsubscribe | Update Your E-mail Address | Other USAID E-Newsletters | Privacy Policy
If you have questions or problems with the subscription service, please contact support@govdelivery.com.
|
Editorial: 
