Inside OHA - PEPFAR 10th Anniversary, New WHO Treatment Guidelines, and More...

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August 2013

Send Us Your Ideas! UPCOMING EVENTS Global Female Condom Day     September 16 International Day of the Girl Child     October 11 PEPFAR Annual Meeting     October 14-17 International Men’s Day     November 19 World AIDS Day     December 1 NEW RESOURCES Global Health Annual Report to Congress Be sure to check out the HIV and AIDS section of USAID’s Global Health Annual Report to Congress! Reinstatement of SD Bioline Rapid Test Kit Effective May 20, Standard Diagnostics’ Bioline HIV ½ 3.0 rapid test kit was reinstated on USAID’s List of Approved HIV/AIDS Rapid Test Kits. Coming SOON! OHA’s new section on USAID.gov! ... for blogs, success stories, videos or other news items that highlight and tell the story of your organization’s work under the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). We love featuring our partners’ work in HIV and AIDS on the Agency’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and website platforms. Contact Goli Fassihian at gfassihian@usaid.gov and Molly Schmalzbach at mschmalzbach@usaid.gov for more information. Farewell to Paul Mahanna, OHA Deputy Director On August 1, after 9 extraordinary years with the Office of HIV/AIDS, our Deputy Director Paul Mahanna departed OHA to take a position in the South African mission. Paul previously served as Senior Program Officer and Chief of the Strategic Planning, Evaluation and Reporting Division. Prior to USAID, Paul was with the Office of Management and Budget for 4 years and for 7 years with the Department of Health and Human Services working on the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act, both within the National Data Branch and the AIDS Drug Assistance Program Branch. OHA cannot begin to enumerate Paul’s many contributions to the fight against HIV and AIDS domestically and globally. He will be sorely missed by his colleagues here in Washington as he was a true inspiration and a model for passionate public service. Ben Gustafson, the Division Chief of Strategic Planning, Evaluation and Reporting, will serve as acting OHA Deputy Director. Best of luck on the new chapter in your career, Paul! Welcome to Charlie Kraiger: Public Affairs Analyst in OHA We are pleased to welcome Charlie Kraiger to the public affairs team in OHA. Charlie joins us from USAID’s Bureau of Legislative and Public Affairs (LPA), where he worked as an intern with the legislative team dealing with the federal budget, Administrator Shah’s testimony before Congress and other Hill activities. Previously, Charlie was at the White House as an associate where he reviewed, analyzed and recommended applications to the White House Internship program. Charlie received his bachelor’s degree in international relations from Michigan State University in 2012 and has interned in the U.S. Senate and the White House. Charlie can be reached at ckraiger@usaid.gov or by phone at 202-712-1521. Molly Schmalzbach is now OHA’s Public Affairs Advisor. She can still be reached at mschmalzbach@usaid.gov or by phone at 202-808-3854. PEPFAR 10th Anniversary PEPFAR celebrated its 10th anniversary on May 27, 10 years after the original legislation - the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 - was signed. In honor of PEPFAR’s 10th anniversary and in conjunction with Global Health Month+, USAID and partners highlighted the important role that creating an AIDS-free generation can play in ending extreme poverty with a series of digital activities. On June 18, Secretary of State John Kerry marked PEPFAR’s 10th anniversary with an event at the State Department. Secretary Kerry announced two major achievements in the fight against HIV and AIDS: Thanks to PEPFAR support, the 1 millionth baby would be born free of HIV in June, and 13 countries are now at the programmatic “tipping point” in their epidemics, where the number of new people on treatment exceeds the number of new HIV infections in a given year. New WHO Treatment Guidelines On June 30, the World Health Organization issued new HIV treatment guidelines, which recommend offering antiretroviral treatment to all adults living with HIV once their CD4 count falls below 500. This recommendation is based on evidence that earlier treatment helps people living with HIV live longer, healthier lives. The new guidance also recommends providing treatment to all people living with HIV who are under 5 years of age, pregnant or breastfeeding or in a relationship with an HIV-negative partner – regardless of CD4 count. USAID's Employee HIV Testing Campaign In honor of National HIV Testing Day on June 27, USAID hosted its first-ever employee HIV testing campaign. We offered free HIV testing and counseling through Community Education Group at the Federal Occupational Health Center in the Ronald Reagan Building to interested employees across the agency. Sixty-four employees were tested, including Assistant Administrator Ariel Pablos-Mendez, Deputy Assistant Administrators Wade Warren and Robert Clay and OHA Deputy Director Paul Mahanna. Supreme Court Decision On June 20, 2013 the Supreme Court of the United States of America issued the opinion on USAID vs. Alliance for Open Society International. The U.S. Government has been reviewing it to see how it will affect our programs. We will, of course, abide by the decision of the Court. HIV Vaccine Awareness Day On May 18, USAID commemorated HIV Vaccine Awareness Day. International AIDS Vaccine Initiative President and CEO Margaret McGlynn wrote on USAID’s IMPACT blog: “All the evidence today suggests that, if we persevere, it is just a matter of time before HIV vaccines become available. That should serve as a source of inspiration to all of us on this HIV Vaccine Awareness Day.” OHA in the News In Honduras, Fighting HIV/AIDS through Music and Theater, Jens Erik Gould, NPR – March 29, 2013 IMPACTblogs – Latest & Greatest On HIV & AIDS   Photo credit: Casey Kelbaugh, Int'l Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs, Columbia Univ. School of Public Health The Promise of MPTs: An Integrated Approach to Women’s Health, Dr. Zeda Rosenberg, CEO, IPM – May 7, 2013 The Best Mother’s Day Gift of All, B. Ryan Phelps, Medical Officer for PMTCT and Pediatric HIV, Office of HIV/AIDS – May 14, 2013 Inspiration for the Journey to an HIV Vaccine, Margaret McGlynn, President and CEO, IAVI – May 17, 2013 Living Positively: The Importance of Pediatric HIV Disclosure, Bisola Ojikutu, MD MPH, Senior Treatment Officer on AIDSTAR-One, John Snow, Inc. – May 20, 2013 #AskAg Twitter Chat: Intersection of HIV and AIDS & Food Security, Agrilinks staff – May 21, 2013 Building Capacity: Racking Warehouses in Ethiopia, Marvin Couldwell, Country Director for Ethiopia, SCMS (Supply Chain Management System) – May 22, 2013 ROADS II Video: Transforming Corridors of Risk into Pathways of Prevention and Hope, Dorothy Muroki, ROADS II Project Director, FHI 360 – May 23, 2013 Community-based Approach Prevents HIV in Children and Keeps HIV+ Mothers Healthy in Bondo, Kenya, Jacqueline Nyagah and Linda Diep – May 24, 2013 Remembering and Learning from Those Lost to AIDS, Christa Gibson, USAID Quality Health Care Project – May 27, 2013 PEPFAR: Ten Years of Saving Millions of Lives, Ambassador Eric Goosby, MD, and Anthony S. Fauci, MD – May 28, 2013 Health Education in Malawi: Helping Create Safer Advancing Behaviors, Heidi Good Boncana, JHU CCP – June 11, 2013 USAID’s Employee HIV Testing Campaign, Molly Schmalzbach, Public Affairs Advisor, Office of HIV and AIDS – July 3, 2013 Angola Embraces New WHO Guidelines that Pave Way for Universal HIV Treatment for Pregnant Women, B. Ryan Phelps, Medical Officer for PMTCT and Pediatric HIV, Office of HIV/AIDS and Melanie Tam, PMTCT Intern, Office of HIV/AIDS – July 11, 2013 A Roadside Attraction in Djibouti: Community and Condoms at the SafeTStop, Carole Douglis, Development Outreach Coordinator, East Africa – July 15, 2013 From the Field in Zimbabwe: Unexpectedly HIV-Free, Margot Welk, Development Outreach and Communications Officer, USAID/Zimbabwe, and Zoe Halpert – August 6, 2013 HIV+ and Pregnant: A Deadly Combination?, Jennifer Albertini, Karen Fogg and Allyson Moran – August 8, 2013 Let’s Talk about HIV: The Importance of Dialogue and Information in Adolescent HIV Care, Bisola Ojikutu, MD MPH, Senior Treatment Officer on AIDSTAR-One, John Snow, Inc. – August 12, 2013 New Mobile Clinics Take to the Road in Lesotho, Mapalesa Lemeke – August 15, 2013

Jacqueline Firth – Jacquie has joined TLR as the HIV/AIDS Continuum of Clinical Services Senior Advisor. She joins us from the Botswana-UPenn Partnership in Gaborone, Botswana, where she was an adult and pediatric TB specialist, technical advisor to the Botswana Ministry of Health’s National TB Program and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Botswana’s School of Medicine. Jacquie can be reached at jfirth@usaid.gov.

Ramona Godbole – Ramona has joined our Health Systems Strengthening Team in SPER as a costing analyst. Ramona joins us from Futures Group, where she provided family planning and HIV research, plus technical assistance. She can be reached at rgodbole@usaid.gov.

Ambereen Jaffer – Ambereen joins SPER as a Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor with the ISPE Team. For the last 7 years, Ambereen was the head of the Monitoring & Evaluation Team at a large university-based organization in South Africa, which received over $40 million annually from PEPFAR. Ambereen can be reached at ajaffer@usaid.gov.

Nadira Kabir – Nadira joins SPER as a Presidential Management Fellow on the Budget Team focusing on Central Initiatives. Previously, she was a part of USAID’s Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition Budget Team. She also previously worked in USAID’s Office of Population and Reproductive Health as part of several private sector project management teams. She can be reached at nkabir@usaid.gov.

Mohammed (Saad) Khan – Saad joins SPER’s ISPE Team as a Health Information Systems Advisor. Previously, he worked at the Department for Veterans Affairs. Saad can be reached at mokhan@usaid.gov.

Erin Lee – Erin has joined SPER’s Health Systems Strengthening group as a costing analyst. Erin comes to us from Abt Associates, where she was primarily responsible for providing technical assistance on USAID- and DFID-funded projects, as well as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Erin can be reached at erlee@usaid.gov.

Rachel Lucas – Rachel has joined SPER’s MEASURE Evaluation Team as the Senior Monitoring & Evaluation Advisor. Rachel comes to us from USAID's Office of Population and Reproductive Health, where she was working on MEASURE Demographic and Health Surveys and MEASURE Evaluation projects and supported various office-wide evaluation initiatives over the last 4 years. Rachel can be reached at rlucas@usaid.gov.

Enilda Martin – Enilda has joined ISD’s Cross Sector Team as a health officer. She has been with USAID for 8 years, the last 5 as a Direct Hire Health Officer. She served in the USAID Ukraine Mission from 2009 to 2013 and in the West Bank and Gaza Mission from 2005 to 2009. She can be reached at enmartin@usaid.gov.

Nithya Mani – Nithya joins ISD as a health specialist and has experience managing and providing technical assistance to U.S. Government HIV and AIDS programs, including in USAID’s Africa Bureau, OHA, Regional Development Mission Asia and OGAC. She most recently worked at Marie Stopes International for 3 years in London and D.C., where she provided technical support to the USAID project Support to International Family Planning Organizations. Nithya can be reached at nmani@usaid.gov.

Kendra Phillips – Kendra recently joined OHA as chief of the Implementation Support Division. She is a USAID Foreign Service Officer in Population, Health and Nutrition. Her previous postings include: Director of the USAID/Eastern Caribbean Regional HIV/AIDS Program, Deputy Director of the USAID/India Office of Health, and Director of the USAID/Southern Africa Regional HIV/AIDS Program. Kendra can be reached at kphillips@usaid.gov.

Matthew Schneider – Matt has joined SPER’s Health Systems Strengthening group as a costing analyst. Matt joins us from Jhpiego’s office in Baltimore, where he worked with the M&E team coordinating and analyzing essential indicators from sub-Saharan African programs reported through their newly created centralized reporting information system. Matt can be reached at maschneider@usaid.gov.

Welcome new staff!

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Photo credit from header: Virginia Lamprecht, Courtesy of Photoshare.