HIV ATLAS

Comments: Universal Access: Are the systems supportive of Harm Reduction (7-8) 7) Bishnu Sharma, Nepal 8) Haobam Nanao * [Mods Note: The posting by Rajesh referred to in the postings below can be found at: http://www.healthdev.org/viewmsg.aspx?msgid=e6a0f4ab-ff2b-4178-aef9-833bf19ba5db For more information about harm reduction in Asia and the Pacific, please refer to the original posting at: http://www.healthdev.org/viewmsg.aspx?msgi

Comment: Poverty and Sex Work (1) Jeyapaul Singh Dear Members - I completely understand and empathize with what Dr. Sugata has expressed. I work among children living with and affected by HIV/AIDS and with their mothers or caretakers. The issue of poverty taking a stronger hand in affecting public health is well understood and it’s getting rooted deeper and deeper even into the lives of children. I happened to listen to the story of a widow mother

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems supportive of Harm Reduction (6) Rajesh Khongbantabam, India Dear Members - In trying to reach a logical conclusion to the above topic, let the brainstorming run its own course. Of course, there is bound to be some points of disagreement. That be said, I fully understand and agree with the concern about safety of the generation and discussing approaches/philosophy with regard to harm reduction. Talking abou

Comment: Poverty and Sex Work Dr. Sugata Mukhopadhyay, India Dear Members - There are basically four factors that push a person into to commercial sex work – poverty, human trafficking, drugs and easy access to good money. Poverty is the most prominent of them. Two years back when I was working with WHO in one of the South East Asian countries I happened to visit one street based sex work site located in one of the prime cities of the country. I met

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems supportive of Harm Reduction (5) Joy Ganguly, New Delhi, India Dear SEA-AIDS members, I really do not understand how we segregate injecting drug users from non-injecting drug users under this concept of harm reduction. Do we all think, the oral drug users are not at risk? Are they are not entitled for any kind of comprehensive Harm Reduction services? Or do they have to wait until they become a hard core injector

Press Release: World Health Report calls for return to primary health care approach WHO 14 October 2008 Dear SEA-AIDS members, The World Health Report 2008, launched today, critically assesses the way that health care is organized, financed, and delivered in rich and poor countries around the world. The WHO report documents a number of failures and shortcomings that have left the health status of different populations, both within and between countries, dangerously out

Action: Harm Reduction 2009 - Abstract Deadline Approaching International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA) The deadline for submissions is November 10th 2008. The deadline for abstract submission for Harm Reduction 2009: IHRA’s 20th International Conference is just a few weeks away. The conference will take place in Bangkok, Thailand from the 19th to the 23rd April 2009 and is expected to attract around 1,200 delegates from 90 different countries. Please visit www.ihra

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems supportive of Harm Reduction (4) Dr. Badar Munir,Quetta, Pakistan Dear SEA-AIDS members, Let me add few more things on harm reduction. What I have seen in various services for injecting drug users through different organization in various cities, so far, only the injecting dug users are focussed for harm reduction, care, treatment and support so far. At majoirty of places, nobody really cares about the families o

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems supportive of Harm Reduction (3) Rajesh Khongbantabam * [Mods note: The posting by Umesh referred in the posting below can be found at: http://www.healthdev.org/viewmsg.aspx?msgid=b174b0d8-da44-4c91-a1bb-4c8cce6b252b This is a further contribution to the question on whether government systems in Asia and the Pacific are supportive of harm reduction. More information is available in the original posting at: http://www.health

Comment: Spotlight: Will access to HCV treatment ever become a reality? (1) Bangkim Chingsubam – Manipur, India Dear Members - In response to Mr. Rajesh concern to – “Will access to HCV treatment ever become a reality?” - I strongly believe that we have enough documentation of HIV/HCV co-infection in the state of Manipur. We don't need to wait for more research or another study to prove this is an issue – how long do we have to wait and see when people

Spotlight Will access to HCV treatment ever become a reality? Rajesh Khongbantabam An article from the HDN Key Correspondent Team 13 October 2008 Send Comment [Mods note: The article below touches upon issues related to harm reducation programs and universal access. An overview of these topics can be found here . Please, share your thoughts on this important issue!] For more than a decade, India’s Manipur state

Action: UNAIDS PCB NGO Delegation Communique UNAIDS PCB * What happened in the PCB meeting in Geneva on October 2nd? The Extraordinary meeting was dedicated entirely to the discussion of the next executive director of UNAIDS. The PCB heard the report of the Search Committee and discussed the top four candidates for the position of Executive Director of UNAIDS. The Search Committee noted that the main issue in its work was the limited number of highly-qualified candidates.

Action: REACH Now - Conference 2008 Save Lanka Kids, Sri Lanka R.E.A.C.H Now - Conference 2008 AIDS has caused one of the greatest reversals in human development history. With a new infection every 13 seconds, 5700 deaths everyday, and more than 2 million killed by it every year, most of us have never known a world without HIV and AIDS. Save Lanka Kids strives to educate, empower and train students, youth & community leaders to be efficient peer educators for HIV

Action: CSAT survey of CMM knowledge Civil Society Action Team (CSAT) Dear Members - Civil Society Action Team (CSAT) is doing a survey of the the various Regions to assess what kind of knowledge there is of the Country Coordinating Mechanisms (CCM). Please take time to fill out the following survey and return to me at coordinator@7sisters.org . We will submit this info to Global Fund. The Civil Society Delegations are seeking suggestions or researching ideas to im

Action: CSAT and Round 9 of the Global Fund Civil Society Action Team (CSAT) * Civil Society Action Team (CSAT) Action Alert in response to the launch of Round 9 Call for Proposals on October 1, 2008 by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. This CSAT Action Alert provides information and practical suggestions for actions that civil society can take in relation to the Round 9 Call for Proposals: http://theglobalfund.org/en/rounds/9/ Two actions civil society

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems really supportive of Harm Reduction (2) Umesh Sharma The representation of the drug user’s community at all levels of response to HIV related to drug use has been very tokenistic. In places where the transmission of HIV is mainly through injecting drug use, their representation is sought by virtue of the epidemic itself. The situation may be different in developed countries but in many Asian countries, where drug

Action: Making GFATM CCM work through full engagement of civil society report The International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC) * [Mods note: To download the below mentioned report, go to: http://www.itpcglobal.org/images/stories/doc/CCM_Advo_Rpt.pdf . Thanks] * The International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC) issued its latest report, Making Global Fund Country Coordinating Mechanisms work through full eng

Action: Call for Film Submissions International Drugs and Harm Reduction Film Fest - Bangkok * The “International Drugs and Harm Reduction Film Fest” has become an integral part of the annual International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA) conferences. Following the success of the fifth event in Barcelona in 2008, we are pleased to provide an even bigger stage in Bangkok, Thailand for film-makers to present their latest films, training videos, documentaries or fictional works.

Comment: Universal Access: Are the systems really supportive of Harm Reduction (1) Margaret Namaganda, Nepal Dear Members - 1. I feel different people in different communities, including IDUs, can play an important role in the prevention of HIV. 2. For Universal Access to be successful, in any country, there is a need for more commitment by the policy makers, service providers, and the beneficiaries themselves. 3. When it comes to the issue of

Comment: Plight of PLHA Drop in Centers Bazo - Nagaland, India * Dear SEA-AIDS Members - Can someone explain what is really there in the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) Phase III for the PLHIV? Providing ART drug; creating awareness; targeted intervention for MSM, FSW and IDU (not all drug users); providing Nevirapine for HIV positive mother and baby; and doing massive HIV test will be the magic to reverse the HIV epidemic? Seriously, can someone please explai