02 September, 2006
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic. From August 11th to the 18th, Dr. Ana Celia Carrero, medical coordinator of the Centro Medico BRA, attended the Annual International HIV/AIDS conference in Toronto, Canada. Dr. Carrero joined a delegation of twenty other Dominican representatives of different organizations that work with HIV/AIDS patients in the country. It was the first time that a member from BRA attended the conference, and this was undoubtedly a very relevant trip. BRA’s major medical clinics provide comprehensive HIV/AIDS services including free testing, psychological support and food security. These services are funded by Poyecto Conecta of USAID which also sponsored Dr. Carrero’s trip to Canada. Other major partners to BRA’s HIV/AIDS program include the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Dominican’s Ministry of Health’s DIGECITTS and COPRESIDA. The conference was an opportunity to learn about the latest protocols in HIV care which need to be applied in the Dominican Republic. BRA also discussed the possibility of participating in a project to offer HIV testing to all patients that present to the clinic suffering from diarrhea for five days or more. A similar initiative conducted in Zambia showed detected a high percentage of infection.
