Bristol-Myers Squibb Launches Secure The Future® Technical Assistance Program To Optimize Community Services For Comprehensive HIV Management

Main Category: HIV / AIDS
Article Date: 09 Aug 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) and the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation announced the launch of the SECURE THE FUTURE® Technical Assistance Program (TAP), an innovative skills transfer initiative designed to enable communities in countries severely affected by HIV/AIDS to optimize the delivery of services for the comprehensive treatment and management of HIV. The SECURE THE FUTURE TAP empowers community-based groups and individuals to identify needs and implement solutions, harness and strengthen their resources and build capacity to improve the effectiveness and sustainability of community outreach programs.

The new SECURE THE FUTURE TAP represents a consolidation of successes, experiences and learnings from nine years of SECURE THE FUTURE, the largest corporate philanthropic commitment of its kind to fight HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. Since its launch in 1999, the program has grown to a $150 million commitment in 12 African countries with special emphasis on community treatment support programs, care for children and building infrastructure. Learnings from SECURE THE FUTURE-supported community programs will be shared in a skills-building workshop and meet-the-expert presentations during the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City this week.

"Bristol-Myers Squibb's SECURE THE FUTURE has worked with community partners in Africa over the past nine years to develop new approaches to respond to the AIDS epidemic in hard-hit communities where resources are limited," said Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation President John Damonti. "The substantial work of our team and partners in implementing HIV services to date has provided us with unique perspectives on what works and what needs to be done differently. This new Technical Assistance Program represents a further evolution of our commitment to building practical and sustainable solutions that address the real needs of both healthcare professionals and beneficiaries."

The SECURE THE FUTURE TAP deploys a faculty of more than 50 experts to work alongside community-based groups and individuals and provides highly customized assistance based on the unique unmet needs and priorities of its recipients. The faculty is comprised of program managers, field workers, researchers, practitioners in the care of orphans and other vulnerable children, community mobilization and capacity building, and experts in the fields of monitoring and evaluation, food security, income-generating activity, governance and financial management. SECURE THE FUTURE provides full support for the deployment of its TAP faculty members, the tools used and the services delivered.

The SECURE THE FUTURE TAP replicates the lessons, experiences and successful models of SECURE THE FUTURE and encourages social entrepreneurship to optimize sustainability. Partners are equipped with the skills and resources to cascade new skills to others. In addition, the SECURE THE FUTURE network is able to link non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community-based organizations (CBOs) to appropriate partners to apply for seed funding for initiatives.

"With the Technical Assistance Program, we aim to further facilitate a 'bottom up' approach to defining needs, and to designing and implementing interventions that are tailored to local realities. Our support for social entrepreneurship adds a new dimension that we hope will help communities and families ensure financial security and sustainability," said Phangisile Mtshali, director of Bristol-Myers Squibb, SECURE THE FUTURE, Southern Africa.

To apply to the new SECURE THE FUTURE Technical Assistance Program, interested participants should submit applications via the Web site www.securethefuture.com. Programs should be aligned to the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation mandate of bridging health gaps and addressing disparities. Priority will be given to entities seeking to integrate and leverage community-based resources to support HIV/AIDS treatment, care and impact mitigation. Priority will also be given to applicants that champion social entrepreneurship.

SECURE THE FUTURE at the International AIDS Conference

The SECURE THE FUTURE TAP complements the SECURE THE FUTURE Manual: Seven Steps to Involve the Community in HIV/AIDS Treatment Support Programs (First Edition), an implementation tool that provides practical, step-by-step guidance on integrating community mobilization and support services with medical care for people living with HIV/AIDS in resource-limited settings. This Thursday, at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, SECURE THE FUTURE representatives will conduct a skills-building workshop to share with NGOs and CBOs operational tools and lessons from the manual. SECURE THE FUTURE grantees will also share successes and key learnings from their programs throughout the conference at the Bristol-Myers Squibb exhibit booth.

About Bristol Myers Squibb

Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to extend and enhance human life. For more information visit http://www.bms.com.

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