Texas Children's Hospital physician to be presented with award at the AIDS 2012 XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C.

Research Award and Celebrated Speakers Affirm Role of BIPAI at Texas Children's Hospital as Top Pediatric Global Health Resource

HOUSTON, July 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The world's largest pediatric caregiver for AIDS, the Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative (BIPAI) at Texas Children's Hospital, will be well-represented at the International AIDS Conference July 22-27 in Washington, DC.  Professor Gabriel Anabwani will be awarded the International AIDS Society/Coalition for Children Affected by AIDSPrize for Excellence in Research Related to the Needs of Children Affected by AIDS. Several physicians from Texas Children's Hospital will also be presenting key abstracts about the state of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa at the conference.

Baylor-Botswana Executive Director Professor Gabriel Anabwani, MBChB, MMed, MSc, was chosen as the investigator whose research is most likely to lead to improved services for children affected by HIV and AIDS.  Professor Anabwani is being awarded for his abstract entitled, The Psychosocial Impact of HIV on the Siblings of Infected Children. 

"Professor Anabwani has helped lead one of the most comprehensive and effective HIV treatment programs in Africa, and his research is invaluable," said Michael Mizwa, chief operating officer and senior vice president of BIPAI at Texas Children's Hospital. "We are thrilled that he is being recognized with this award for his excellent leadership and achievements."

Under the direction of preeminent AIDS scholar and activist Dr. Mark W. Kline, physician-in-chief of Texas Children's Hospital, founder and president of BIPAI and chair of pediatrics at BCM, the program currently has more than 100,000 HIV-infected children and families in its care, more than double the number of HIV-infected children in the United States Canada and Western Europe combined. BIPAI includes an established infrastructure of HIV/AIDS centers across Africa and in Romania that is staffed by local health professionals as well as American physicians recruited to the Texas Children's Global Health Corps.

"Our staff treats more children and families with HIV/AIDS than any other organization worldwide, and we believe it is our responsibility and privilege to impart our knowledge of the subject with others who are aligned with our goals," said Kline.  "We are looking forward to sharing our research findings, lessons learned and best practices, in the hopes of building the necessary momentum to end the HIV pandemic." 

AIDS 2012 is the premier gathering for those working in the field of HIV, as well as policy makers, persons living with HIV and other individuals committed to ending the pandemic.  Sessions will focus on the latest issues in HIV science, policy and practice. Texas Children's physicians and staff presenting at the conference include:

• Dr. Saeed Ahmed, assistant professor of pediatrics at BCM, presenting The Tingathe Program: Community Health Workers Improving Case Finding, Enrollment, and Care of HIV-Exposed and Infected Children in Malawi
• T. Marukutira presenting The Psychosocial Impact of HIV on the Siblings of Infected Children
• Michael Mizwa presenting Creating Indigenous Non-Government Organizations for Program Management, Support and Operations: Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative and Public Private Partnerships: Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children´s Hospital
• Sebastian Wanless presenting Utilization of the Balanced Score Card for Effective Management of NGOs Providing HIV Services in Developing Countries
• Dr. Michael Tolle, assistant professor of pediatrics at BCM, presenting The Effects of Measles on Immunologic and Virologic Markers in HIV + Children and Adolescents Living in Botswana
• Dr. Maria Kim, assistant professor of pediatrics at BCM, presenting Low Rates of Early Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission in a Routine Programmatic Setting in Lilongwe, Malawi
• G. Letamo presenting Challenges and Coping Mechanisms of HIV Infected School Age Children in Botswana
• G. Karugaba presenting Disclosure of Children´s HIV Status to School Personnel: To Do or Not To Do? Survey on the School Needs of HIV-Infected Children and Adolescents in Botswana
• Marape Marape, assistant professor of pediatrics at BCM, presenting Isoniazid Preventive Therapy (IPT) and Risk of Resistant Tuberculosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis and Regimen-specific Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Among HIV-Infected Adolescents at a Pediatric HIV-Treatment Centre in Gaborone, Botswana
• P. Patel presenting Long-Term and Short-Term CD4 T Cell Response to Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Among HIV-Infected Adults in an Outpatient Clinic at the Botswana-Baylor Children´s Clinical Centre of Excellence in Gaborone Botswana
• E. Kossow presenting Teen Mothers Support Group (TMSG): Improving the Clinical and Psychosocial Well Being of HIV-infected Teenage Mothers at the Botswana-Baylor Children's Clinical Centre of Excellence (BBCCCOE)

Participation at AIDS 2012 is one of the many projects undertaken by the staff of BIPAI at Texas Children's Hospital in hopes of serving the international community as a leading partner in the advancement of global pediatric healthcare priorities such as ending the HIV epidemic. Based on the success of this model of HIV/AIDS care delivery, BIPAI now is turning to other neglected diseases heavily impacting the world's poorest children and families. The network of BIPAI clinics and partnerships established throughout sub-Saharan Africa will provide the infrastructure and capacity to tackle a multitude of other serious or life-threatening diseases, including malaria, tuberculosis and non-communicable diseases like sickle cell and cancer.

For more information on the AIDS 2012 conference, please visit: http://www.aids2012.org/

For more information on BIPAI at Texas Children's Hospital visit: www.bipai.org

About Texas Children's Hospital
Texas Children's Hospital, a not-for-profit organization, is committed to creating a community of healthy children through excellence in patient care, education and research. Consistently ranked among the top children's hospitals in the nation, Texas Children's has recognized Centers of Excellence in multiple pediatric subspecialties including the Cancer and Heart Centers, and operates the largest primary pediatric care network in the country. Texas Children's has completed a $1.5 billion expansion, which includes the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute; Texas Children's Pavilion for Women, a comprehensive obstetrics/gynecology facility focusing on high-risk births; and Texas Children's Hospital West Campus, a community hospital in suburban West Houston.  For more information on Texas Children's, go to www.texaschildrens.org. Get the latest news from Texas Children's by visiting the online newsroom and on Twitter at twitter.com/texaschildrens.

Contacts: 
Christy Brunton                    
O: (832) 824-2645                
C: (281) 684-3184                
[email protected] 

Sarah Frankoff
O: (212) 677-2748     
C: (713) 553-8984
[email protected]            

SOURCE Texas Children's Hospital