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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts: 
Kubataev, Arsen
Regional Director
Moscow
a.kubataev@aiha.ru

Jurkevich, Inna
Program Officer
Washington
ijurkevich@aiha.com

 
Event will help Russia Christian community build critical capacity to provide care and support services to PLWHA

Moscow, Russia, and Washington, DC, October 24, 2006—The American International Health Alliance (AIHA) is pleased to announce its participation in a series of HIV/AIDS palliative care training workshops that begin today at St. Petersburg State Medical University.

With funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), AIHA has been working closely with the Christian Interchurch Diaconal Council of St. Petersburg, the St. Petersburg Eparchy’s Charity Department, and St. Petersburg State Medical University to develop a train-the-trainers course and workshop program that enhance the knowledge and skills of members of Russia’s Christian community—including clergy, sisters of mercy, and volunteers—who provide care, social services, and spiritual support to hospice patients and people living with, or affected by, HIV or AIDS. Additional support for the trainings was provided by Norwegian Church Aid, the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services, and the United Nations Development Programme.

Today’s train-the-trainer workshop targets 25 individuals who organize and provide HIV/AIDS palliative care services in the Northwest region of the Russian Federation, specifically the cities of Arkhangelsk, Kaliningrad, Moscow, Murmansk, Petrozavodsdk, Nizhny Novgorod, and St. Petersburg. The overall goal of the event is to expand the knowledge of skills of professionals who already serve as palliative care trainers.

Two subsequent two-day workshops will focus on educating volunteers, lay order members, medical students, and other caregivers about various aspects of providing palliative care services to PLWHA and their families. In addition to lectures and group exercises, these workshops will include practical, skills-building sessions hosted by a local nursing college. Topics covered during the training include an overview of HIV infection and AIDS, end-of-life care, occupational health, burnout prevention, pastoral care, the role of the church, and counseling issues. Some 150 participants are expected to attend these workshops.

Created in 1992 by a consortium of major healthcare provider associations and professional medical education organizations, AIHA establishes and manages twinning partnerships between health-related institutions in the United States and their counterparts in Africa, Asia, Eurasia, and the Caribbean. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), funded by the American people, provides economic and humanitarian assistance in more than 100 countries to provide a better future for all.

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