The UK Consortium on AIDS and International Development, which features Violet Shivutse of GROOTS Kenya,  is proud to announce the launch of our new publication Care and Support: The Forgotten Pillar of the HIV Response, the result of the collaborative efforts of 10 Consortium member agencies from our Care and Support Working Group. It is a testament to the Consortium’s collaborative working practices and our collective ability to deliver powerful and important results, in this the year we celebrate our 25th Anniversary as a network.
 
Care and Support: The Forgotten Pillar of the HIV Response focuses on the provision of care and support in resource-poor countries. It highlights where care and support is provided and who is involved, what the need is for care and support and its effect, and looks at the link between the care and support and other elements of the HIV response. Above all, this documents aims to clearly demonstrate why care and support are fundamental to a successful response to HIV and in addressing broader health and international targets such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
 
The launch of this publication is part of a broader HIV Care and Support Initiative at the Consortium, a programme of work designed to help drive forward this vital yet neglected area of the global HIV response, critical to achieving the goal of Universal Access for people living with HIV. The Initiative is primarily driven by our Care and Support Working Group which has already played a leading role and developed an impressive body of work in this area. Last year’s HIV Care and Support Conference in London, which brought together grassroots caregivers from across Africa with senior representatives of the UK government and key agencies tasked with responding to the pandemic including WHO, UNAIDS, The World Bank, The Global Fund and PEPFAR, marked a key milestone in the efforts of the Working Group to bring care and support into the centre of the HIV response. Following the conference, a great deal of work has continued to ensure that the commitments made at this event translate into action at both a policy and programmatic level.
 
Care and Support: The Forgotten Pillar of the HIV Response is designed to serve as a practical resource for health and development professionals working on HIV and related issues. Every page of this report is a call to action, moving us beyond the business of conferences and publications, to the business of improving people’s lives.

For further information, please contact the Consortium’s Communications Manager Richard Walker at Richard@aidsconsortium.org.uk who we thank for this update.

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