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For more information or to sign up for this newsletter, please email: [email protected] or contact the Academic Alliance Foundation office:
1611 N. Kent Street, Suite 202
Arlington, VA 22209
phone: (703) 294-6551
fax: (703) 647-8000
www.academicalliancefoundation.org |
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Message from the President |
On November 14th we lost a dear friend, colleague and mentor, Dr. Merle Sande, AAF's founder, after a long and courageous struggle with cancer. All of us involved in the Academic Alliance Foundation (AAF) have a story to tell about the day Merle Sande inspired us to do something truly great. The long list of Merle's outstanding accomplishments does not stop at what he himself was able to do, but continues, to include some of what all of us have achieved, and will achieve, at his urging, at his encouragement, and at his insistence. Merle's enthusiasm was a source of inspiration for his friends and family, his colleagues, and countless others who were fortunate to know him even briefly.
Merle will be remembered around the world not only as a visionary, but also as an impatient visionary: one who could see a better future and wanted to take the practical steps necessary to bring it about as quickly as possible in order to relieve suffering. Merle envisioned the profound long term benefits which could result from strengthening academic medical institutions and building healthcare capacity to overcome the burden of HIV and other infectious diseases in Africa.
I feel privileged to have the opportunity to continue the work Merle began. I was truly humbled and honored when he asked me to succeed him as the President of AAF. I am committed to ensuring that Merle's life, his energy, and his vision will continue to live on in the lives we are saving everyday in Africa.
Today, his many friends and colleagues rededicate our efforts to realizing his dream. Please consider supporting AAF and Merle's legacy with a generous contribution. A contribution of any amount is appreciated. Your gift will ensure that our patients receive the critical treatment they need; that those caring for people living with infectious diseases are equipped with the tools and skills needed to provide excellent care; and that Africans are given the opportunity to develop the medical leadership required to stem the tide of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases for generations to come.
Together we can achieve Merle's dream of a stronger Africa for future generations.
Warm regards,
Warner C. Greene
President |
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| Dr. Keith McAdam Honored as Founding Director of IDI |
This fall the Academic Alliance Foundation (AAF) and our implementing partner the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) marked an important milestone in achieving our vision of an independent African-led IDI. In October the leadership of IDI transferred from the founding Director of the institute, an expatriate, to a Ugandan national. Dr. Alex Coutinho took the helm at IDI in October as Dr. Keith McAdam ended his three-year tenure as the founding Director. The transition was celebrated on the evening of October 18th as IDI and AAF, friends and supporters gathered in Kampala, Uganda.
During the evening Keith McAdam was honored not only for the strong leadership he provided over the past three years as the founding Director of the IDI, but also for the caring and commitment he brought to this role.
During Dr. McAdam's tenure he not only oversaw the development of excellent management teams and systems that established IDI as a model institution, he also developed several new initiatives that reached out into the community in new and innovative ways. One example is an initiative with the Kampala City Council (KCC) that builds capacity at the KCC clinics to enable them to take on some of the primary HIV care load, which in turn allows IDI to focus on more difficult and advanced HIV patients that other clinics are not able to effectively treat. Dr. McAdam also pioneered the Change Agents Project to test the effectiveness of empowering people living with AIDS to support prevention, adherence, stigma reduction and disclosure.
One of Dr. McAdam's greatest achievement was recognizing the opportunity to mobilize an important asset in the fight against HIV/AIDS: the people and communities most affected by the disease. He started the Creativity Initiative, which provides leaders of vulnerable communities with powerful prevention messages, encouraging them to act as advocates in their urban neighborhoods and villages. The Creativity Initiative's important objectives are accomplished in ways that genuinely brighten the daily lives of IDI patients, now called "Friends," and of those who know them. Through this exciting endeavor, Friends join with volunteers to sing and dance, draw and paint, impart entrepreneurial and life skills, share testimonies, and provide spiritual and social support. Dr. McAdam's Creativity Initiative has brought hope and dignity to all our Friends.
Dr. Merle Sande, former President of the Academic Alliance Foundation had the following to say about Dr. McAdam's tenure as IDI Director: "In a supreme culmination of his long and distinguished career in infectious disease focused in sub-Saharan Africa, Keith recruited a world class leadership team of accomplished individuals, and brought unrivaled credibility to IDI's research, training and clinical care programs. Keith's tireless work, his creative initiatives and the vibrant environment he established at IDI has made this a model for all of Africa: something that we're extremely proud of."
The Academic Alliance Foundation would like to thank Keith McAdam for his three excellent years of service to the IDI. The solid foundation Dr. McAdam built at IDI has positioned the institute for great success as Alex Coutinho takes the helm for the next chapter in IDI"s development.
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Support the Academic
Alliance Foundation! |
Continued success in the fight against HIV/AIDS requires a significant investment of resources on the local, community and international level. To realize the impact of AAF's training, treatment, research and prevention programs, its activities must be expanded to reach every corner on the continent.
Your support for AAF will help us move toward effectively treating HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases for generations to come. Please support our programs through a donation to AAF. To contribute, please visit us on our website www.accordiafoundation.org/aaf or call us at (703) 294-6551. |
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| IDI Training Statistics |
African healthcare providers trained at IDI in enchanced Malaria and HIV/AIDS Prevention, Care and Treatment
1,916 healthcare
workers have
been trained to
date and are
working in
26 different
African countries |
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| AAF is proud to be part of the Combined Federal Campaign this year, which allows federal government employees to donate to selected non-profit groups through voluntary payroll deductions. Look for AAF (#12331) in the CFC catalog that was recently distributed to all federal workers. To make a donation through this campaign, please contact your Human Resources Department or Office of Personnel Management. |
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AAF wishes to
acknowledge the following recent major gifts |
• BD delivered their second installment of a three year $300,000 grant to advanced training for laboratory technicians and laboratory directors throughout Africa.
• The Gilead Foundation continued their support of AAF with a $350,000 grant to train the next generation of African and North American healthcare professionals in international medicine.
• The ExxonMobil Foundation awarded AAF and IDI a $160,000 grant to conduct a study pertaining to Rapid Diagnostic Tests used for patients with suspected malaria cases.
• The Constella Corporate Giving Fund of Triangle Community Foundation donated $10,000 in core support for AAF. |
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AAF Honors Ambassador
Mark Dybul |
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Friends and supporters of the Academic Alliance Foundation (AAF) gathered at Gotham Hall in New York City on Wednesday, November 7th for the third annual A Celebration of Partnership Gala. This year's event honored Ambassador Mark Dybul, a global leader whose vision and leadership inspire worldwide partnership around the common goal of HIV/AIDS care and prevention in Africa. Ambassador Dybul was chosen as this year's AAF Global Health Leadership Award recipient because of his untiring commitment to combating HIV/AIDS, including his important work as the Coordinator of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
During his key note address, Ambassador Dybul recalled his first trip to Uganda, during which he witnessed very sobering physical evidence of the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic " a long procession of coffins leading out of the city every weekend. He remarked that due to the work of organizations like AAF and IDI, in partnership with PEPFAR, Global Fund and others, there is real progress being made in the fight against AIDS and the traffic jams of coffins have eased. Individuals infected with HIV are starting to receive the lifesaving treatment they need, with treatment rates in Africa increasing every day. However, Ambassador Dybul noted that much work remains to be done and he challenged the audience to continue the fight against infectious diseases in partnership with our friends in Africa.
Dr. Alex Coutinho, the new Executive Director of IDI, picked up on this theme, thanking AAF's supporters for their generosity in reaching out to the people of Uganda and inspiring attendees with his personal accounts of the powerful impact that our work is having throughout Africa.
At the end of the evening AAF invited the world-renowned African Children's Choir to the stage to perform as ambassadors for all children in Africa who have become orphans because of the AIDS pandemic.
This year's celebration raised $650,000 to support the work of AAF and its partnership with the Infectious Diseases Institute. AAF would like to thank all of our sponsors and friends who made this year's event such an overwhelming success. |
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Africa's Next Generation:
Dr. David Meya, Infectious
Disease Fellow |
In November 2005, Dr. David Meya was selected as an Infectious Diseases Fellow at the Infectious Diseases Institute in Kampala, Uganda. This fellowship program is made possible through the support of the Academic Alliance Foundation and special funding from the Gilead Foundation. Dr. Meya recently shared with us his experience as part of this program and the impact this opportunity has had on his career.
My name is David Meya and I am an Infectious Diseases Fellow at the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) in Kampala, Uganda. My association with the IDI goes back to the year 2002 when I had the privilege of attending the first training course for African doctors in HIV care and prevention that was organized by the Infectious Diseases Institute and the Academic Alliance.
Subsequently I did my Masters in Internal Medicine at the Mulago Medical School and again I met up with Academic Alliance members Professor Allan Ronald and Professor Merle Sande. Dr. Sande and Dr. Ronald inspired my interest in infectious diseases. They were instrumental, together with all the other Academic Alliance members who have played a very great mentoring role, in getting scholars interested in infectious diseases here in Uganda.
For some reason, in many tropical countries, people who trained generally as doctors or healthcare workers were assumed to know all about infectious diseases. But the truth is we were not receiving specialized training in this area. Infectious diseases present in a very complicated manner and specific training in this area before the IDI was founded at Makerere University was lacking.
Today, IDI and the Academic Alliance are making tremendous strides in changing the way we address the challenges of infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa. I am now in my second year of the Infectious Disease Fellowship Program and it has been a great experience. I have been able to learn a lot about clinical research and patient care. In addition I have been exposed to the latest research through participation in international meetings that I attend with fellowship support. This has opened my eyes to a number of new ideas and has allowed me to meet a lot of international infectious disease specialists that I am now starting to collaborate with on clinical research projects here at the IDI and Mulago Hospital.
IDI is a place where young African scientists have the opportunity to learn how to face infectious disease epidemics in our own local settings. There are many great schools in Europe and North America, but why should Africans go abroad to learn about tropical medicine when we bear the greatest burden of infectious diseases here in our local communities? I envision the IDI becoming a place where people from developed countries will come to train in tropical medicine.
My career objective is to become a clinician educator and an independent clinical researcher based at the Infectious Diseases Institute and Mulago Hospital. I envision this Infections Disease Fellowship as a great opportunity afforded me by the Academic Alliance Foundation and the Infectious Diseases Institute to practice medicine in the area of infectious diseases, and to be able to learn and carry out clinical research aimed at improving the lives of our people.
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AAF Positioned
for Growth |
The Academic Alliance Foundation (AAF) would like to thank Rosann Wisman, its first Executive Director, for her role in enabling AAF to become a visionary and dynamic organization that is responding to some of the most important healthcare challenges of our times. Board Chairman, Hank McKinnell, reflected on Ms. Wisman's tenure during the past two years at AAF. "Rosann Wisman provided leadership of the AAF during an important transition in its growth and development. She did an outstanding job in leading the operations. She is leaving AAF with a top notch management and program development team and highly effective financial, personnel, and operating systems in place. As Executive Director, Ms. Wisman worked with me and the board of directors to define a broader long-term vision for AAF that positions us for continued growth and a vital impact on the fight against infectious diseases in Africa."
Ms. Wisman will be stepping down at the end of the year knowing that she leaves the organization on solid footing. During Ms. Wisman's tenure, AAF developed a strong platform of both corporate and individual supporters upon which to build. Ms. Wisman expressed her encouragement about the future for both AAF and IDI, "It has been a pleasure to be part of the early development of these important organizations. We have an outstanding team at AAF and IDI and I am confident that the collective impact of AAF and IDI will be remarkable in the years ahead."
Carol Spahn, former Director of Finance & Administration at AAF, will succeed Ms. Wisman as Executive Director. Ms. Spahn has extensive experience in both finance and non-profit management. She looks forward to utilizing her business skills to serve AAF in her new capacity.
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IDI Builds Capacity
to Fight TB in Africa |
Every 18 seconds an individual dies as a consequence of pulmonary tuberculosis. The Academic Alliance Foundation's focus on building healthcare capacity has addressed this issue indirectly for several years. Trainees in our HIV/AIDS courses at the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) receive valuable information about co-infection of TB and HIV, and learn better ways to prevent tuberculosis and slow the disease's progression in their patients. To build on this, a planned Integrated Capacity-Building Program will address tuberculosis more directly, with a dedicated module for the mid-level practitioners most often responsible for care of TB patients.
However, the disease is so widespread that even with major advances in healthcare capacity, its early diagnosis and effective treatment seem a long way off. Further, while treatment is available, it is long and burdensome, and re-infection is common among drug-cured patients.
IDI was recently challenged to develop clinical trial capacity in the search for a TB vaccine. A multi-million Euro grant from the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) was recently awarded to IDI and will be used to prepare and promote sustainable capacity to carry out clinical trial activities in Uganda, in anticipation of a viable tuberculosis vaccine candidate in the very near future.
Headed by Drs. Philippa Musoke and Harriet Mayanja-Kizza, the project will address tuberculosis more directly, rural health clinics, and associated laboratories to build and manage medium-sized clinical trials, in advance of a future tuberculosis vaccine candidate for testing. Staff will be trained to identify, enroll and monitor patients for cohort studies at international standards. Local health clinics will be trained to conduct follow-up activities and collect samples from cohort patients for the duration of their observation. Laboratories will be trained to properly handle specimens and accurately conduct required tests and report results. The project will be conducted over three years in South-South collaboration with the University of Capetown, and also in partnership with the Karolinska Institute, and the University of Antwerp.
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