AIDS Training and Education Center

What We Do › Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV › AIDS Training and Education Center

Established in July 2006, the St. Petersburg AIDS Training and Education Center (ATEC) and its affiliated clinical sites will help develop the institutional and human resource capacity the Russian Federation needs to reach its HIV/AIDS care and treatment goals through targeted training for physicians, nurses, and social workers. Training courses are also be conducted for healthcare policymakers and clinic administrators, as well as allied care professionals ranging from psychologists and laboratory technicians to peer counselors and representatives of nongovernmental organizations, to better ensure comprehensive, accessible care for people living with HIV/AIDS. 

The training center is initially focusing on building capacity in Altay, Chelyabinsk, Irkutsk, Kaliningrad, Krasnodar, Saratov, Sverdlovsk, Volgograd, and Leningrad Oblast—all regions that are currently experiencing some of the country’s fastest growing rates of new HIV infections and have been designated as priority areas by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria‘s round-four grants.

With support from other donors, courses will also be provided to healthcare professionals striving to improve HIV/AIDS-related care and treatment elsewhere in Russia and in neighboring countries. Additionally, ATEC’s evidence-based courses—which have been developed in close cooperation with the World Health Organization—will serve as a key element of ongoing efforts to integrate HIV/AIDS care and treatment into Russia’s continuing education system for medical workers.

The St. Petersburg ATEC is part of a synergistic network of training facilities spanning Central and Eastern Europe, which comprise the Regional Knowledge Hub for Care and Treatment of HIV/AIDS in Eurasia. The Regional Knowledge Hub and its first training centers in Ukraine were developed by AIHA, WHO, and GTZ and tasked with developing a cadre of well-trained, knowledgeable, and skilled professionals who work in close collaboration with community-based organizations dedicated to providing care and social support to PLWHA. 

The Regional Knowledge Hub, the St. Petersburg ATEC, and its sister centers are designed to build technical capacity in countries throughout the region as they work to effectively access and utilize grants available through the Global Fund and other large-scale donor organizations.

While the St. Petersburg ATEC provides direct technical assistance and helps to establish collaborative links among institutions involved in HIV-related care in the Global Fund’s round-four regions in Russia, its broader purpose is to serve as a key coordinating mechanism for capacity building. As such, it will tap into the strengths of the many international and local organizations committed to ensuring that the Russian Federation meets the challenges of providing clinical services and social support to those living with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS.  

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