[e-drug] MSF Satellite in Mexico on Sunday, August 3

E-DRUG: MSF Satellite in Mexico on Sunday, August 3 - MIND THE GAPS: AIDS TREATMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF HEALTH CARE WORKER SHORTAGES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Make your Sunday morning before the IAC count!
Don't miss the Médecins Sans Frontières Satellite Meeting:

MIND THE GAPS: AIDS TREATMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF HEALTH CARE WORKER SHORTAGES

A Médecins Sans Frontières Satellite Meeting
XVII International AIDS Conference
Mexico City 2008

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) welcomes you to attend this satellite
meeting on the impact of the health care worker shortage on access to
HIV/AIDS treatment and lessons learned from clinicians and advocates
working on the ground to overcome this gap.

Sunday, 3 August 2008, 9:00 am-1:00 pm
(Join us for breakfast starting at 8:30 am)

Melia Reforma Hotel
Paseo de la Reforma Mexico City

An estimated 70 percent of people who need antiretroviral treatment
are still not getting it. One of the most important barriers to access
to treatment is the critical shortage of health care workers. This
shortage contributes to unnecessary illness and death, yet
acknowledgement of the human resource crisis has not yet translated
into strategies and funding to stimulate needed change.

"MIND THE GAPS"--a half-day satellite meeting preceding the opening
ceremonies of the International AIDS Conference organized by Médecins
Sans Frontières (MSF)--will include reports on efforts to expand and
uphold quality of AIDS treatment in the context of severe shortage of
health care workers and critical discussions among experts and AIDS
activists about possible policy shifts needed to confront one of the
largest barriers to scale-up and quality AIDS treatment.

Speakers include:
- Dr Mphu Ramatlapeng, The Right Honourable Minister of Health &
Social Welfare, Kingdom of Lesotho
- Stephen Lewis, Co-Director, AIDS-Free World and Former UN Special
Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa
- Vuyiseka Dubula, Secretary General, Treatment Action Campaign (TAC),
South Africa
- Dr Wim Van Damme, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium
- Gorik Ooms, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium
- Asia Russell, Health GAP
- Paul Kasonkomona, Treatment Advocacy and Literacy Campaign (TALC)
- Dr Jenifer Kavuma, Health Workforce Advocacy Forum (HWAF), Uganda
- Dr Pheello Lethola, MSF Lesotho
- Dr Moses Massaquoi, MSF Malawi

For a full satellite agenda and to register (not required, but
appreciated!), as well as find information about other MSF events at
the IAC, please go to:
http://doctorswithoutborders.org/MexicoAIDSConference2008/

MEDIA: A press briefing will be held at 8 am at the conference venue.

Please note: We are aware that there is an unfortunate schedule
overlap with the GHWA session on the health worker shortage later in
the morning. We have tried to find other options, but the clash was
unavoidable. We encourage those attending the IAC to ensure that both
events are well attended and we make the health care worker shortage a
focus for the day and the whole conference! Thank you.

--
Rachel M. Cohen
Head of Mission
MSF South Africa & Lesotho
Mobile: +27 71 603 1628
Office: +27 21 364 5490
Fax: +27 21 361 7051
Email: msfb-capetown-hom@brussels.msf.org and (in case of email
problems) rachel.cohen72@gmail.com