Downstate Partners With South African AIDS Program
Jul 10, 2008
Brooklyn, NY - SUNY Downstate’s HIV Center for Women and Children has received a grant for $160,000 from the American International Health Alliance to establish a “twinning partnership” with the Centre for Health Systems Research & Development at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa. The grant is supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of President Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
The partnership is intended to strengthen HIV and tuberculosis (TB) research projects in the Free State. Of the 2.9 million people living in the South African province, an estimated 31 percent have tested positive for HIV. The Free State has the third highest rate of HIV infection among the country’s nine provinces.
The University of the Free State’s Christo Heunis, PhD, and Nandi Jacobs, MS, visited Downstate recently to report on the progress being made against HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in South Africa. At a special lecture attended by SUNY Downstate healthcare professionals, Dr. Heunis noted that while the South African government makes anti-HIV medications available, there are still obstacles to getting the drugs to many of the people who need them.
Earlier this year, Jack DeHovitz, MD, director of the HIV Center for Women and Children, visited the University of the Free State, as well as the Free State’s Department of Health, to get a clearer picture of HIV and TB epidemiology, care, and prevention programs and current research goals for the region.
“Currently, three University of Free State faculty members are in the United States to receive training and technical assistance in epidemiology and research design,” said Dr. DeHovitz. “We look forward to continuing this valuable collaboration.”
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About SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn is one of four academic health centers (AMCs) in The State University of New York (SUNY) 64-campus system and the only SUNY AMC in New York City dedicated to health education, research, and patient care for the borough’s 2.7 million residents. Its flagship hospital, University Hospital at Downstate (UHD), is a teaching hospital and benefits from the expertise of Downstate’s exceptional medical school and world-class academic center research facilities. With a staff of over 800 physicians representing 53 specialties and subspecialties, Downstate offers comprehensive healthcare services to the community.
UHD provides high-risk neonatal and infant services, pediatric nephrology, and dialysis for kidney diseases and is the only kidney transplantation program in Brooklyn. Beyond its clinical expertise, Downstate houses a range of esteemed educational institutions, including its College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, School of Graduate Studies, and School of Public Health. Downstate fosters innovation through its multifaceted biotechnology initiative, the Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT, which support early-stage and more mature biotech companies.