Avac Event
Wednesday, November 15, 11:00 to 12:30 PM ET
Dr. Marina Caskey of Rockefeller University and members of the REACH Community Advisory Board hosted a webinar on November 15 to review the current state of HIV cure research. This webinar explored what makes curing HIV so challenging, the strategies being pursued, and what is happening in locally in NYC!
AVAC’s Px Pulse podcast has a new episode: Inclusion of Pregnant and Lactating People in HIV Research: What you need to know.
People who are pregnant or lactating (PLP) have historically been excluded from research because of concerns for the developing fetus. But this has led to a dearth of data on new interventions against health threats for this population. In the case of HIV, pregnancy raises the risk of acquiring HIV by up to three times, but providers often do not have the data to know whether a new intervention is safe or how it will work for pregnant patients. As a result, PLP and their physicians are left to make difficult decisions around the use of proven HIV prevention products as they await more data specific to pregnancy and lactation.
But change is in the air. Champions for the inclusion of PLP in research are paving the way for a paradigm shift— one that will redefine this population from needing protection from research to being better protected through research. In this episode of Px Pulse, AVAC’s Manju Chatani-Gada takes us through conversations with a trial participant who became pregnant, researchers, policy-makers and donors to understand why this population gets excluded, the impact it has, and what to do about it.
AVAC’s Wawira Nyagah and Kate Segal co-authored a comprehensive manuscript on a demand generation approach for the DPP (Dual Prevention Pill) including findings from research with potential users, male partners, and healthcare providers.
Read the abstract below and the full published research article here.
Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs) combining contraception with HIV prevention offer a promising solution to uptake and adherence challenges faced with oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). The Dual Prevention Pill (DPP), which combines oral PrEP with an oral contraceptive pill (OCP), could address unmet need for family planning (FP) and HIV prevention. This study aimed to identify barriers and motivators for DPP uptake to inform the development of a DPP demand generation strategy and broader introduction efforts for MPTs.
This analysis is a compilation of recommendations from civil society and community organisations on the DRAFT Negotiating Text of the WHO convention, agreement or other international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (WHO Pandemic Agreement).
Avac Event
The Pandemic Accord negotiations are ongoing, and should come to fruition next year. What do they mean for your work, your country, and the future of global health?
On Tuesday, November 21, 8:00 to 9:30 AM EST / 2:00 to 3:30 PM CEST, advocates came together to discuss two years of talks and what’s next to progress global health equity.
Avac Event
Save the Date: Tuesday, November 21 to Friday, November 24
Africa Health R&D Week 2023 is designed to recognize achievements and step up advocacy for sustainable financing of health R&D through domestic resource mobilization (DRM) in Africa.
Inaugurated in 2022, the Africa Health R&D Week is a continental movement that builds bridges between researchers, policy makers, regulators, civil society advocates and community members committed to Africa’s health transformation through health R&D, and innovation.
This year the four-day virtual forum focuses on the need for sustainable support for vaccine development and manufacturing in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Domestic Resource Mobilization (DRM). The 2023 edition will leverage South-South learning, by eliciting/ linking lessons and experiences from Asia and Africa.
Hosted by IAVI, in partnership with AVAC under the USAID-funded Coalition to Accelerate and Support Prevention Research (CASPR), the forum will discuss:
Day 1 – The aspirations, the reality and the gaps in Vaccine Manufacturing in LMICs (underscoring Africa)
Day 2 – African Countries contribution to the continental vision (Case studies of building manufacturing capacity)
Day 3 – Industry perspectives from Africa and Asia: Opportunities and challenges, and addressing the issue of sustainability
Day 4 – Advocates workshop to develop an advocacy roadmap to champion vaccine manufacturing
AVAC joined more than 100 organizations to endorse the 2023 Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice Policy Agenda. Check it out to see recommendations to the US Executive Branch that would protect and expand access to sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice around the world. This Blueprint comes as several major threats to sexual health, rights and justice are gaining ground: the loss of abortion access and gender-affirming care in the US, and criminalization of LGBTQ people around the world.
The October and November calendar of webinars offers a wealth of conversations on cross-cutting issues facing advocates who care about global health equity and HIV prevention. From discussions on PEPFAR reauthorization, to an evolving picture on sexually transmitted infections, to case studies on new interventions at the intersection of HIV prevention and family planning, to research on barriers to care and health priorities for Black gay men in the US; it is a season for advocates to engage in shaping an agenda for 2024.
Scroll down for details and see you online!
October 26, Practicality over Panic: What happens if PEPFAR isn’t reauthorized?
At 11:00 AM ET: Join the Global AIDS Partnership (GAPP) for a candid assessment of the current landscape around PEPFAR, including the implications for work on the ground. It is intended to redirect anxiety into action and provide a reality check: PEPFAR is not going anywhere any time soon.
October 31, Boo, Syphilis is Really Back!
At 1:00 PM ET: Syphilis rates have increased drastically in recent years. Learn how others are addressing these rising rates and the techniques clinicians are using to detect, treat, and prevent infections. Co-hosted with NACCHO and NNPTC.
November 7, Results from STI Landscaping Analyses in East and Southern Africa—Part 1
At 9:00 AM ET: Hear results from STI landscaping projects conducted by AVAC partners in seven different East and Southern African countries that explored needs for STI vaccines and diagnostics.
November 9, Results from STI Landscaping Analyses in East and Southern Africa—Part 2
At 8:00 AM ET: Hear results from STI landscaping projects conducted by AVAC partners in seven different East and Southern African countries that explored needs for STI vaccines and diagnostics.
November 9, Pioneering Self-care Solutions to Drive Access to HIV Prevention and Family Planning
At 8:00 AM ET: This session will amplify lessons from five self-care interventions in family planning and HIV prevention — with case studies on specific interventions— DMPA-SC; the Caya Diaphragm; the Dual Prevention Pill; HIV self-testing; and Triggerise; an mHealth platform. Learn more about how these successful self-care strategies can be applied across diverse settings and join the discussion on the future of self-care in sexual and reproductive health. This session is part of the 2023 Self-Care Learning and Discovery Series. Learn more here.
November 15, HPTN 096: Building Equity Through Advocacy – An Integrated, Status-Neutral Approach for Ending the Epidemic Among Black Gay Men in the South
At 10:00am ET: Join The Choice Agenda and partners for a fascinating discussion about a novel, much-needed HIV prevention research study – HPTN 096. Currently in the field, the study addresses social, structural, institutional, and behavioral barriers to HIV prevention and care. Visit the study website here. See the speakers list here. Co-sponsored by PrEP in Black America and Federal AIDS Policy Partnership Research Working Group
This document stems from a March 2023 consensus meeting in Paris involving regional and international HIV prevention organizations and activists. Four main pillars were identified to promote new PrEP technologies and expand access to long-Acting injectable PrEP in Europe. These pillars should be implemented simultaneously and also aim to broaden PrEP accessibility beyond LA-CAB.
Avac Event
Thursday, October 26 at 11:00 AM ET
This discussion will offer a candid assessment of the current landscape, including the implications for work on the ground. It is intended to redirect anxiety into action and provide a reality check: PEPFAR is not going anywhere any time soon.
MODERATOR: Elisha Dunn-Georgiou, Global Health Council
SPEAKERS:
Jen Kates, Kaiser Family Foundation
Katie Coester, Global AIDS Policy Partnership, EGPAF
Mark Lagon, Friends of the Global Fight
Richard Muko, AVAC