After Disappointment - Unexpected Help

June 2009

Every day, 50 to 75 women and girls are raped in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It is estimated that two-thirds of the rapists are infected with HIV.

We want to announce our Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Program in eastern DRC and share the story of how quickly and wonderfully it came together.

Contributor Highlights

April 2009

“Investing in health will help the world extricate itself from the mire of poverty.” Gro Brundtland, WHO’s former Director General and Amartya Sen, Nobel Laureate Economist

In this newsletter we take a look at a selection of our valued contributors

Commitment And Progress

Because we deliberately select programs in countries that have recently become stabilized, or remain unstable, our commitment to our partners is absolutely essential.  These countries do not receive the proportionate funding from international organizations needed to carry out HIV prevention and care.

Our Volunteers. A Snapshot

Our volunteers may not donate blood (except to those voracious African
mosquitoes), but they do donate their time and energy and pay their own
expenses to make the journey to our programs across the continents. We are indebted to them and grateful on behalf of the hundreds who benefit.

Support for Our Health Care Workers

When Global Strategies for HIV Prevention was established a major goal was to train healthcare workers in resource-poor countries to implement the remarkable advances in prevention and care that had been achieved in the United States.

Conflict and Hope

The title “Conflict and Hope” seems to sum up the year. In spite of increasing political instability, we started a number of new programs, bringing hope through your donations and the dedication of amazing health
care workers.

Hope Walks: A Program of Global Strategies

Our world already holds more than 15 million children orphaned by AIDS and more than 2 million HIV infected children under age 15. Many millions
more have been caught in the horror of rebel attacks and warfare. Their lives are no less precious than our children’s, yet their fate is unbearably cruel. Once you’ve looked into these children’s eyes, their faces etch into your
memory as a haunting reminder of injustice.

24 hours: A Journey Toward Hope

We started out early from Goma, eastern Congo. Joseph Ciza, a nurse who had traveled this route many times assisting victims of rebel activity, said that that the region was declared safe by UN Security Forces. As
added security, we traveled in an ambulance with a conspicuous red cross on the side. We were advised to return before dark.

A Year of Progress and Hope

In fall 2005, Global Strategies began a partnership with HEAL
Africa, a faith-based organization located in Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Goma is situated at the epicenter of the 9 year
war taking place in eastern Congo, and in turn has become home to
thousands of refugees.

Liberia: Land of the Free

Liberia, “Land of the Free,” was founded in 1847 by freed American slaves. From the language to the constitution, the country was modeled after the United States. After fourteen years of civil war there are few comparisons that are easy to make. There is no running water, no electricity, no garbage collection; little infrastructure of any type. Yet, nestled into this country of just over three million people, are many wonderfully dedicated Christians who believe in freedom and hope for a better future. They are surviving adversity.

One Person In A World of Need

I am awed with the great impact one individual can have as he or she seeks to follow the teachings of Jesus. Each person seems to be part of a great mosaic put together piece by piece as part of God's master plan.

We Owe Them Hope - Healthcare workers and the impact of HIV/AIDS

Many of us have experienced a moment when an injustice becomes so clear, we cannot turn our backs. For Dr. Larry Peiperl, a friend and fellow
physician caring for HIV patients, that moment came during a National Institutes of Health (NIH) sponsored meeting on HIV vaccines.

Buduburam Refugee Settlement, Ghana/ Training Liberian Refugee Healthcare Workers

To many of us, the word 'refugee' brings to mind the notion of a hastily built tent camp filled with weary travelers living on emergency supplies. I was surprised to learn therefore that Buduburam, the refugee camp for Liberians in Ghana, was established in 1992. Buduburam, one of several camps for Liberian refugees, has swelled its numbers from 2,000 to 42,000, including 1,800 unaccompanied orphans.

Pennies from Heaven - The impact of some unusual donations at the Faith Alive Clinic in Jos, Nigeria

It began with just 300 pennies and grew to an outpouring of love and immeasurable blessings...

Dominican Republic / Step by step to success

The first step in HIV prevention is often the most difficult. Overwhelming issues, complex logistics, and sheer numbers trap us in a sort of inertia, while the HIV epidemic relentlessly spreads. Over 1,800 newborns exposed to HIV every day need not get infected - even a week’s hesitation may mean we have forever missed the opportunity to protect a child from a cruel
and fatal HIV infection.

Save a Life Update / Nevirapine preventing HIV infection in babies

With your donations to Save a Life we have reached over 70 hospitals and clinics in 18 countries throughout the world. Some of these programs were the first in their country to ever receive nevirapine to treat HIV infected pregnant women and prevent infection of their infants.

Emergency response in Liberia / Update Jina Uganda orphans

Liberia, a small West African country of 3 million people, has been much in the news lately. Unfortunately, it has not been for good reasons. The people of Liberia, a country that was founded as a refuge for freed African slaves, now seek refuge themselves from the country’s interminable civil war and political chaos. Exhausted by war, and in desperate need of humanitarian aid to meet their basic needs, they have pleaded for help from the outside world.

A Trilogy of International Conferences on Prevention of HIV

When the result of the clinical trial ACTG 076 was first announced in 1994 it was heralded as one of the most significant advances in prevention since the start of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Treatment of HIV-infected pregnant
women and their infants with AZT resulted in a 60 percent reduction in HIV infection of the infants. But with a cost of over $1000 for treating a mother and infant, it was clear that there would be little benefit to resource poor countries. How could we, and the many healthcare workers in developing countries move the scientific and clinical agenda toward finding solutions for the rapidly expanding epidemic in the developing world?

Program Highlights: East Africa, Upcoming Events

Nevirapine for Tanzania

An exceptional graduation

Second International Conference On Global Strategies for HIV Prevention