WHO At The XVIIth International AIDS Conference, Mexico City, 3-8 August 2008

Main Category: HIV / AIDS
Also Included In: Conferences;  Tuberculosis
Article Date: 31 Jul 2008 - 13:00 PDT

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WHAT

Several top officials from the World Health Organization (WHO) attending the XVIIth International AIDS Conference in Mexico City will participate in a series of media briefings.

WHO is the directing and coordinating authority on international health and takes the lead within the UN system on the global health-sector response to the AIDS epidemic.

WHO:

- Dr Hiroki Nakatani, Assistant Director-General, HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria, and Neglected Tropical Diseases, WHO
- Dr Carissa Etienne, Assistant Director-General, Health Systems and Services, WHO
- Dr Kevin M. De Cock, Director, HIV/AIDS Department, WHO
- Dr Teguest Guerma, Associate Director, HIV/AIDS Department, WHO
- Dr Paul Nunn, Medical Officer, Stop TB Department, WHO

These WHO officials will be addressing the HIV-related topics listed below, and also will be available for individual interviews.

Monday, August 4

1:00 p.m. Press Conference Room 3, Media Centre, Hall A

WHO media briefing: Reducing deaths from TB/HIV among injecting and other drug users - Meet the experts

It is estimated that one in 10 new HIV infections worldwide are attributable to injecting drug use, and almost one in three new infections outside of Africa. Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading killer of drug users living with HIV. The first-ever policy guidelines to address the risks of HIV and TB co-infection among injecting and other drug users include 13 specific recommendations to expand universal access to HIV and TB prevention, treatment and care services.

Key message: Specially targeted measures needed to reach injecting and other drug users.

- Prof Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
- Dr Kevin De Cock, Director, HIV/AIDS Department, WHO
- Dr Paul Nunn, Coordinator, TB/HIV, Stop TB Department, WHO
- Mr Christian Kroll, Global Coordinator HIV/AIDS, UN Office on Drugs and Crime
- Mr Michael Bartos, Team Leader, Prevention, Care and Support Team, UNAIDS
- Dr Daniel Wolfe, Director, International Harm Reduction Programme, Open Society Institute

Tuesday, August 5

11:00 a.m. Press Conference Room 2, Media Centre, Hall A
WHO press conference: A 'how-to' guide for scaling up HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support interventions in the health sector

WHO will launch a package of priority health-sector interventions designed to help low-and middle-income countries scale up towards universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010. The publication is designed to be a 'living' web-based document that will be periodically updated with new recommendations based on the rapidly evolving experience of health-sector scale up.

Key message: A "one-stop" package describing priority interventions for a health sector response to HIV/AIDS.

Dr Hiroki Nakatani, Assistant Director-General, HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases, WHO
Dr Teguest Guerma, Associate Director, HIV/AIDS Department, WHO
Hon. Tony Clement, Minister of Health, Canada
Hon. Teodros Adhanom, Minister of Health, Ethiopia
Mr Mark Harrington, Director, Treatment Action Group (TAG)
1:00 p.m. Press Conference Room 1, Media Centre, Hall A
WHO press conference: Interaction of health systems and Global Health Initiatives

- Dr Carissa Etienne, Assistant Director General, Health Systems and Services, WHO
- Dr Kevin M. De Cock, Director, HIV/AIDS Department, WHO
- Dr Julio Frenk, Senior Fellow, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
- Dr Jim Yong Kim, Head of Francois Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard School of Public Health
- Hon. Emmanuel Otaala, Minister of Primary Health Care, Uganda

Impressive strides have been made with new directed funding streams to HIV/AIDS and other disease-specific programs, such as tuberculosis, malaria, immunization, polio and onchocerciasis. These have included contributions to the building blocks of health systems in many countries such as the establishment and expansion of infrastructure, including labs and clinics. However, there is a growing debate focused on how to increase the benefits as well as guard against adverse consequences of global health initiatives on national health systems. Critics claim that disease-specific initiatives overburden already weak health systems, while others assert that weak health systems are holding back progress in disease specific initiatives. Others say we need to continue disease-specific scale-up efforts and that strengthening health systems requires additional investment. As part of WHO's effort to gather evidence and provide technical guidance to guide Member States in this area, this media event will reflect the essential features of this discussion.

http://www.who.int

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