By Eliza Squibb | Executive Director
It has been a tumultuous year in Mali, in fact, a series of tumultuous years since the 2012 coup d'etat. The national security situation is affecting the work of many international NGOs, but it’s with great relief and pride that we can assure you that our Mother to Child Transmission Prevention program (MTCTP) established in 2005 is still thriving. In fact, we now have a full 10 years of successful data to share with you and the global health community. 15,459 pregnant women have been tested for HIV over the past 10 years, that’s 99% of all the women seen for prenatal care in Sikoro, on the outskirts of Bamako. 268 women tested positive for HIV, and they were enrolled in the MTCTP program, so that their babies could be born HIV free. In fact, anyone who tests positive for HIV is enrolled in a long-term treatment program with a dedicated specialist and pharmacist. Ours was the first clinic to start “decentralizing” HIV care, and last December, the Minister of Health in Bamako visited to learn more about how this model is increasing access to care and prevention among the most resource-poor neighborhoods.
We are especially proud of the HIV testing acceptance rate at our clinic. Compared to other MTCTP clinics in Mali where only 31% of women accept testing, our 99% acceptance rate is an incredible statistic made possible through the work of our dedicated staff of midwives and doctors who ensure that women understand what will be best for them and their infants.
Of course, the best part of all this is how proud our HIV+ mothers are of their HIV free children. It’s amazing to see these healthy kids grow up each time we’re back in Mali for a visit. Moms love to have their pictures taken, and sometimes they are more enthusiastic about it than their babies who have just woken up from a nap!
In 2016, we plan to turn our focus to expanding this successful program to the other community-run clinics nearby where MTCTP is not running smoothly. After all our years of experience, GAIA’s medical staff is eager to share the incredible advances made possible through donations to this program with their community members. We are actively seeking funding through multiple partnerships to expand MTCTP; we hope you will join us in ensuring this life-saving program continues to benefit even more expecting mothers in Bamako.
We are so grateful for all the years of your support!
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