Botswana
Although Botswana has one of the fastest growing economies in sub-Saharan Africa, 37.5% of its population is infected with HIV/AIDS, the second highest rate worldwide. The government of Botswana, along with various aid agencies, have worked to establish a comprehensive program to provide antri-retroviral therapy (ARVs) to people infected with HIV/AIDS. ARVs are often a complex combination of medications which need to be taken with 95% adherence to be effective in delaying the progression of the disease.
2008
In July of 2008, BTB interns Kemly Philip and Kristen Rodgers worked at the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative Center of Excellence in Gabarone, Botswana to implement a system to calculate a patient's adherence to ARV medications. They also conducted chart reviews to assess the onset of hematologic disorders in pediatric HIV patients on highly-active anti-retroviral treatment (HAART).
2007
Lindsay Zwiener and Rachel Solnick worked at the BIPAI COE in Gabarone, Botswana to develop a system for doctors to quickly generate pictorial-based drug regimen guides for HIV-postive patients. They also conducted a study of 70 HIV-positive patients to analyze how virus mutations influenced the effectiveness of specific anti-retroviral medications.
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The pictorial dosing guide uses images to represent how much medication is needed, at what time, and if it needs to be taken with food or drink. |
BTB Partners in Botswana
BIPAI
The Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative (BIPAI) was established to provide quality, ethical, and high impact pediatric and family HIV/AIDS care and treatment, health professional training, and promising clinical research in the nations of southern Africa and other parts of the world devasted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Website: http://bayloraids.org/
