Harvard Researcher Based in Botswana Will Address National AIDS Epidemic at Meharry Global AIDS Week of Action Event, March 31
Meharry Medical College students will host a presentation by an internationally recognized AIDS researcher and clinician during observance of its Global AIDS Week of Action.
NASHVILLE, TN (PRWEB) March 26, 2004
Meharry Medical College students will host a presentation by an internationally recognized AIDS researcher and clinician during observance of its Global AIDS Week of Action.
Dr. Joseph Makhema, co-director and senior clinical research manager of the Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership (BHP) will speak on “The National Response to the HIV/AIDS Epidemic: The Botswana Experience” from noon to 1 p. m., Wednesday, March 31. The event is free and open to the public and will be held in M001 auditorium of the Harold D. West Basic Sciences Building, on 21st Avenue North at Meharry Boulevard.
Global AIDS Weeks of Action are held at institutions throughout the U. S. during March and April. Sponsored by Physicians for Human Rights in conjunction with Partners in Health and the American Medical Student Association, the weeks feature activities designed by participating medical schools to focus on education and action on global HIV/AIDS. With 8,200 deaths and 15,000 new infections each day, the AIDS pandemic is considered the most devastating crisis in the history of human health. Global AIDS Weeks of Action help to engage health professional students and the public in a variety of activities promoting global AIDS advocacy.
Makhema has extensive experience treating people with HIV/AIDS as a consultant physician at Gaborone Private Hospital and as a Botswana Government Physician Specialist at Princess Marina Hospital, also located in Gaborone. In March 2003, he became co-director of the BHP, a collaborative effort of the Government of Botswana and the Harvard AIDS Institute. Makhema also currently serves on the Vaccine Committee, helping to oversee BHP’s “Maiteko a Tshireletso” – “protection effort” in Setswana – Vaccine Initiative.
Makhema received his university education at the University of Botswana, the University of Nairobi in Kenya (where he attained a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery), and Montreal Sick ChildrenÂ’s Hospital. He continued his medical education at Kenyatta Hospital in Kenya, and the Pfizer Foundation in Edinburgh, Scotland. He passed his post-graduate examination to become a member of the Royal College of Physicians in the United Kingdom in 1993.
About Meharry Medical College
Meharry Medical College is the nationÂ’s largest private, independent historically black institution dedicated solely to educating health science professionals. Since its founding in 1876, it has been a leading educator of African-American physicians, dentists and biomedical scientists. Black Issues in Higher EducationÂ’s ranking of institutions annually lists Meharry as the top educator of African Americans with M. D. and D. D.S. degrees and Ph. D. degrees in the biomedical sciences. The College is particularly well known for its uniquely nurturing, highly effective educational programs; preeminence in health disparities research; culturally sensitive, evidence-based health services; and significant contribution
To the diversity of the nationÂ’s health professions workforce. For more information, visit the Meharry Web site at www. mmc. edu.
About the American Medical Student Association
The American Medical Student Association (AMSA), with more than a half-century history of medical student activism, is the oldest and largest independent association of physicians-in-training in the United States. Founded in 1950, AMSA is a student-governed, non-profit organization committed to representing the concerns of physicians-in-training. With approximately 40,000 members, including medical and pre-medical students, residents and practicing physicians, AMSA is committed to improving medical training as well as advancing the profession of medicine. AMSA focuses on five strategic priorities, including universal health care, disparities in medicine, diversity in medicine, leadership development and transforming the culture of medicine. To learn more about AMSA, our strategic priorities, or joining the organization, visit www. amsa. org.
About Partners in Health
Partners In Health, a Harvard-affiliated non-profit organization, provides medical assistance to hundreds of thousands of poor men, women, and children suffering from treatable diseases in Haiti, Peru, Russia, Mexico, Guatemala and the United States. Its groundbreaking work in treating tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS has changed the approach that the World Health Organization and other global health care authorities take to the treatment of these and other infectious diseases. More information is available at www. pih. org.
About Physicians for Human Rights
Founded in 1986, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), based in Boston, mobilizes the health professions to promote health by protecting human rights. Global AIDS Weeks of Action and Health Action AIDS are projects of Physicians for Human Rights in coordination with Partners In Health. As a founding member of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, PHR shared the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize. To learn more, visit the PHR Web site at www. phrusa. org.
About the Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership
The Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership, established in 1996 by the Government of Botswana and the Harvard AIDS Institute, is dedicated to collaborative research and education activities in the fight against HIV and AIDS. In addition to undertaking HIV-related research relevant to Botswana, BHP engages in large-scale training programs for the countryÂ’s health care personnel. The BHP Web site can be found at www. hsph. harvard. edu/bhp (http://www. hsph. harvard. edu/bhp).
