ICAP Leaders from 10 Countries Meet on Global Health in Amman
AMMAN, JORDAN – October 24, 2009 – The International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs (ICAP) at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, began discussions today at Columbia University Middle East Research Center (CUMERC). The meeting brought together ICAP’s leadership to discuss its ongoing work and to plan for new directions in confronting major health challenges in the countries where ICAP currently works as well as new initiatives. ICAP is led by global director Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, professor of epidemiology and medicine, who was born and raised in Egypt.
“This is an opportune moment to reflect on our achievements in confronting the HIV epidemic,” commented El-Sadr. “It is also the right time to build further on the established platforms and to tackle other health issues that communities face.”
Strengthening health systems has been at the core of ICAP’s approach. Capacity building, technical inputs, infrastructure support and attention to the burden of disease at the community level are ways in which ICAP is designed to achieve a durable and broad impact. The two-day meeting in Amman, Jordan involved senior leaders from across 10 program countries, as well as from ICAP’s headquarters in New York City. The meeting drew from the experiences in ICAP’s country programs, and explored ways to continue making large-scale impacts on the HIV epidemic while also strengthening larger systems of care for others in the community.
This topic will be addressed at a symposium on October 26. The symposium, entitled, “Focus on Families: An Effective Approach for Optimal Health Outcomes” will be attended by senior representatives from the public sector, private sector, and civil society who are actively engaged in the field of public health.
CUMERC in Amman was chosen as a location for the meeting in recognition of the Center’s key role in the Middle East region and ICAP’s interest in contributing to addressing some of the key health challenges that the region faces.
"Jordan serves as a model for the region in many areas including the quality of its health care," said Professor Safwan Masri, Director of CUMERC. "Our Center is invested in facilitating knowledge and the exchange of ideas, as well bringing the expertise of Columbia University to bear on and learn from Jordan and the Middle East."
Since it was founded in 2004, ICAP has been instrumental in providing more than 750,000 people with access to HIV care and 358,000 individuals with HIV treatment. This includes 81,000 children who are receiving HIV care and 34,000 children who are receiving antiretroviral treatment. In addition, ICAP-supported sites have provided HIV counseling and testing to 735,000 people, prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services to more than 700,000 women, and tuberculosis screening to nearly 135,000 HIV-positive individuals. ICAP supports 944 sites and 328 laboratories.
About the Columbia University Middle East Research Center
The Columbia University Middle East Research Center is one of the first in a network of Columbia Global Centers the University is launching around the world. The Center, headquartered in Amman, Jordan, provides a regional base for scholarly activities throughout the Middle East and advances the University's academic partnerships and programs in the region. The mission of the Center covers pursuits ranging from education to architecture to environmental sustainability. Programs currently underway feature Columbia’s Teachers College, School of Social Work, Graduate School of Business, the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, the Mailman School of Public Health, and many others. To learn more, visit http://cumerc.columbia.edu.
About ICAP
The International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs (ICAP) is based at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health in New York City. ICAP is a global leader in HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment, working in 13 resource-constrained countries in Africa. Since it was founded in 2004, ICAP has been instrumental in providing more than 750,000 people with access to HIV care and 358,000 individuals with HIV treatment. ICAP also has indirectly benefitted millions more. For more information, visit www.columbia-icap.org.