Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Doctors of the World-USA at Work: Enabling Communities in Kenya to Fight HIV/AIDS
Our HIV/AIDS project in Kenya represents one example of DOW’s remarkable and high-impact model at work. DOW is working with local partners in West Pokot, Kenya, a rural area devastated by high rates of HIV infection, to bring life-saving treatment and prevent new infections.
As part of this project, seven local clinicians and 10 DOW staff facilitated the training of 600 traditional birth attendants and 175 hospital staff. The impacts: over 3,700 individuals are receiving HIV counseling and voluntary testing; 1,000 HIV+ patients and their families are receiving HIV treatment, care, and support services; and 360,000 community members are able to access comprehensive AIDS services.
WHAT WE DO
Doctors of the World-USA’s unique approach to health interventions allows us to reach thousands each year by not only offering direct services, but also by providing the training and capacity-building that enables local providers to meet the needs of their communities for years to come. All of our programs are designed to:
Build the capacity of local providers.
We are able to reach thousands each year by equipping local providers with the training, systems, and resources they need to deliver care and support to their communities.
Engage multiple levels of government.
By working with local leadership and government at multiple levels (village, city, province, national), our efforts are designed to be adopted by existing health systems and be continued beyond our direct involvement.
Develop replicable solutions.
Our local staff routinely shares lessons learned and proven solutions to other communities in need, vastly expanding the lives saved and the people served.