[afro-nets] Scale-Up of HIV Responses: WHO Toolkits available

[Peter Weis <weisp@who.int>]

Scale-Up of HIV Responses: WHO Toolkits available
-------------------------------------------------
 
Dear colleagues:
 
I would like to draw your attention to three HIV toolkits devel-
oped by WHO during the last 18 months, and invite you to examine 
to what extent these WHO products might be useful in your daily 
work in regions and with countries. We would also appreciate if 
you further disseminate this information and recommend and pro-
mote toolkit use in your region, as appropriate.
 
Under responsibility of the HIV Department, WHO developed during 
2003/4, in partnership with academic and civil society organiza-
tions and with support from GTZ, three HIV toolkits for pro-
gramme managers relating to three different key areas of scale-
up of health sector responses to HIV. All three documents are 
currently online on the WHO website. All 3 will also be avail-
able as CD-ROM and hardcopy by end of Feb 2005 from the WHO HIV 
documentation centre (Andrea Firley <firleya@who.int>):
 
* HIV Testing and Counselling: 
http://www.who.int/hiv/toolkit/tc
 
* HIV Interventions in Sex Work Settings: 
http://www.who.int/hiv/toolkit/sw
 
* Scaling Up Antiretroviral Treatment: 
http://www.who.int/hiv/toolkit/arv
 
These HIV toolkits bring together a worth of research and prac-
tical experiences from many different settings and countries on 
what does and does not work: e.g. to change behaviour of vulner-
able groups, how to develop or strengthen HIV testing and coun-
selling services or to expand ART and care services in clinics 
and organize adherence support in the community. The toolkits 
are living documents and are updated by the HIV Department (fo-
cal point is Manuela Moeller <moellerm@who.int>).
 
The sex worker toolkit, for example, was developed by WHO 
jointly with civil society organizations (e.g. Open Society In-
stitute), networks of sex workers and sexual minorities (e.g. 
TAMPEP) and academic institutions (e.g. Johns Hopkins Univer-
sity). Included in the online toolkit are practical "how to do 
it" documents like 'Hustling for Health' and 'Making Sex Work 
Safe', written by experienced sex worker groups to support pro-
gramme managers in setting up and maintaining projects. It is 
the first ever online toolkit aiming to help sex workers to pro-
tect themselves and their clients from infection with HIV and 
other sexually transmitted infections. The toolkit is intended 
for use by people working with female, male and transgender sex 
workers including programme managers, field workers and peer 
educators. This is the first time this expertise has been for-
mally documented and made widely accessible.
 
The tool kit also includes valuable data and analysis which can 
be shared across regions and used to design better HIV preven-
tion programmes for sex workers, for example "Police and Sex 
Workers in Papua New Guinea". A report on "Meeting the sexual 
health needs of men who have sex with men in Senegal" gives 
valuable insight into dealing with the cultural sensitivity sur-
rounding men who have sex with men in West Africa, how their 
lives are characterized by violence and rejection and that many 
find it easier to get help and treatment than from clinics than 
traditional healers. This online collection of more than 130 
easily-accessible documents, manuals, reports, and research 
studies aims to make vital information about sex work interven-
tions more accessible to a wider audience and to share lessons 
learnt.
 
Your comments on the usefulness of the toolkits in your work, 
and your suggestions on how to improve them will be much appre-
ciated.
 
Kind regards from Geneva,
Dr Peter Weis
Medical Officer
Office of the Assistant Director-General
Family and Community Health
World Health Organization
CH 1211 Geneva 27
Tel: +41-22-791-2865
Fax: +41-22-791-4382
mailto:weisp@who.int
 
World Health Day - 7 April 2005
Make every mother and child count
http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2005/en/