On Thursday, Dec. 1, organizations, individuals, medical professionals and others observed World AIDS Day. The theme for this year – “Leading with Science, Uniting for Action” – spotlighted the global effort toward HIV/AIDS prevention, the strides which have been made and the work that still lies ahead.
From a global perspective here is what we know. According to the Centers for Disease Control
- More than two-thirds of the estimated 34 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide are in developing countries and nearly three-fourths of the 2.7 million new HIV infections in 2010 occurred in these countries.
- Nearly 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV infection, with approximately 50,000 Americans becoming infected with HIV each year.
- Today, 1 in 7 new infections worldwide occur through mother-to-child transmission.
Research and education about HIV/AIDS continues on a global level and that research has shown us that a focus needs to be placed on the following three initiatives in order to begin to make a difference in the battle against this serious illness.
Those initiatives include:
- Reducing mother-to-child transmission by broad efforts to step up HIV testing for pregnant women and treatment for those who test positive during pregnancy. Such efforts in 2010 resulted in 114,000 babies not being born with HIV.
- Medical male circumcision on a voluntary basis which would reduce the risk of female to male transmission by nearly 60 percent. This is a priority in eight countries with high HIV numbers.
- Earlier introduction of antiretroviral treatment as a means of prevention. Research has shown that those receiving treatment decreased the risk of transmission to an uninfected partner by 96 percent.
While great strides have been made, there is still much work to be done. While these efforts are great on a global level, we have work to do in Omaha as well.
Founded in 1984, the Nebraska AIDS Project (NAP) leads the community in the fight to overcome HIV/AIDS and its stigma through education, supportive services and advocacy.
As a member of the NAP Board of Directors I feel our work is never done and education on many levels regarding HIV/AIDS continues to be a priority for our organization.
Our organization’s largest fundraiser of the year – Night of a Thousand Stars – is planned for Saturday, Dec. 3.
The event, which runs from 8 p.m. to midnight, is a celebration of the lives of those touched by HIV/AIDS, but also an opportunity for us to educate and advocate for the work that still remains.
