The U.S. Government supports a new Outpatient Clinic for people living with HIV/AIDS in Hai Phong

July 11, 2008

A new Outpatient Clinic for people living with HIV/AIDS was opened on July 11, 2008 in Hai An District, Hai Phong city. The Clinic is supported by USAID under the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through Family Health International (FHI). The Clinic will provide comprehensive treatment, care and support including antiretroviral treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS in the district and other neighboring areas. The Clinic will also help strengthen home based care services to people living with HIV/AIDS, orphans and vulnerable children, and families and enhance skills of household caregivers.

Senior representatives from the following agencies / organizations attended the opening ceremony and cut the ribbon: the Hai Phong City Department of Health, Provincial AIDS Committee, People's Committee of Hai An District, PEPFAR and FHI .

FHI and the Hai Phong city Department of Health signed an agreement with the objective of reducing the risk of HIV transmission among most-at-risk populations including injecting drug users, female sex workers, and their sexual partners; improving the quality of life of people infected with, and affected by, HIV/AIDS in Hai Phong through an integrated network of prevention-to-care continuum services. The project funding level is more than $350,000, lasting from October 2006 to September 2008, with activities implemented in all the districts of the city.

To date, the project has reached more than 4,400 female sex workers and 4,600 injecting drug users with many support services, provided counseling and testing services to more than 4,000 people and home-based care services to 235 people living with HIV/AIDS and 160 orphans and vulnerable children, and provided patients on Methadone maintenance treatment for 88 patients.

The PEPFAR program in Vietnam focuses on critical interventions for HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support. The PEPFAR budget for Vietnam for Fiscal Year 2008 is $88 million.