 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
V. AnnDenise Brown, DrPH, Director of Evaluation, The Balm in Gilead, Inc., 130 W 42 Street, Suite 450, New York, NY 10036, 212-730-7381, vadbrown@balmingilead.org, Joyce Moon Howard, DrPH, Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health Division of Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University, 600 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032, and Pernessa C. Seele, MA, Founder/CEO, The Balm in Gilead, Inc., 130 West 42nd Street, Suite, 450, New York, NY 10036.
The Africa HIV/AIDS Faith Initiative, a project of The Balm in Gilead, Inc. with funding support from CDC, aims to build the infrastructure within faith communities in several African countries so that they will become more effective in the fight against the AIDS pandemic. The initiative is designed to build a sustainable health education and service delivery system within African faith communities. African faith communities are strategically positioned to play a major role in reducing HIV infection rates. As a result of developed networks, they are unparalleled in their ability to reach Africans across gender, age and economic divides. The African Initiative conducted a preliminary needs assessment survey which was used to ascertain the current levels of involvement in, as well as barriers to HIV/AIDS-related activities. The survey was administered by trained interviewers to a convenience sample of faith leaders in Kenya, Cote D’Ivoire, Tanzania and Nigeria. Preliminary results (n=1260) indicate that although 62 % of these institutions were involved in HIV-related activities, the majority were not currently working with health or any other agencies to provide HIV-related services. Respondents defined priority areas for HIV services as HIV education, prevention and outreach, HIV counseling and support for faith leadership. Frequently mentioned barriers were a lack of financial resources and expertise in providing these services.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: International Public Health, Faith Community
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: The Balm in Gilead, Inc.
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: I am an employee of this organization.