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In Focus #9: March 2000Dear Friend of Project InformThank you for your continuing commitment and generous support as Project Inform enters our 15th year of providing information, inspiration, and advocacy to people living with HIV. This milestone in our work is not necessarily a cause for celebration. We neither expected nor desired to be around this long. However, the epidemic continues, and so does the need for our work: to deliver accurate and independent treatment information to all who need it, to ensure that research and treatment agendas reflect the real needs of people living with HIV, and to fight for sound public policies that provide access to treatment and quality care for all. We are gratified that more treatment options now exist, enabling many to live longer and better than anyone had dared to hope. Yet, serious challenges still lie ahead. Science is far from the goal of ensuring that people with HIV will be able to live normal life spans with uncompromised quality of life. This will always be our mission: to reach that goal as soon as possible. As we enter our 15th year, we pay tribute to the many who did not survive by renewing our commitment to the work that remains. We are blessed with supporters who are equally steadfast in their commitment to our mission. We thank you for entrusting us with the work we are privileged to do. Website Experiences Continued GrowthIt’s easy to lose yourself in the onslaught of information that five million websites have to offer. In the midst of that cyber-jungle, Project Inform is proud to maintain a confidential place where anyone in the world can get accurate HIV treatment information in the privacy of their own homes at their own pace. Currently the website logs nearly 100,000 page downloads every month, with people accessing our infor-mation from Spain, Italy, Argentina, Mexico, Australia, Japan, and many other countries. Project Inform’s website, www.projectinform.org, is low on bells and whistles but full of accessible files to download, well suited for older browsers and computers. Our subsites for women-specific information and Spanish translated material continue to grow quickly. Project WISE increased 550% over the past year while the Spanish pages increased by 325% and Public Policy increased by 900%! We anticipate even more growth during 2000. And there are many other changes. Our domain name now reflects our full organizational name. Upcoming developments include a user feedback form, redesigned pages for easier reading, and continued additions of all our printed material. Please visit us online, anytime! We are always seeking volunteers to help with html, a very important and easy volunteer activity you can do right at home! If you’re interested in getting involved with Project Inform’s web team, contact Mark Owens at 415-558-8669 x 239 or volunteer@projectinform.org. Lend Your Voice to the National HotlineVolunteers are the heart and soul of Project Inform. Without them, Project Inform could simply not provide all the services we do. Volunteering is an empowering act, whether you are HIV-positive and staying healthy or are HIV-negative and remaining uninfected. Every person who volunteers at Project Inform is here for important personal reasons, and each one makes a difference in the fight against HIV disease. This is especially true for our National HIV/AIDS Treatment Hotline. The Hotline is staffed by a dedicated group of 60 volunteers. Intensive training enables volunteers to handle a wide array of phone calls from people seeking treatment information, assistance with decision-making, and support for coping with treatment regi-mens, side effects and other issues. The Hotline receives about 40,000 calls a year. Most callers are HIV-positive; others are doctors, nurses, social workers, and families and friends of people with HIV. About a third of Hotline calls come from women, and more than a third of our calls are from people of color. A growing number of our callers seek Spanish-language information and services. We are always eager to expand our outstanding group of diverse Hotline volunteers. We are especially looking to recruit bilingual Spanish/English indi-viduals to enable us to better serve our callers. Please seriously consider joining us on the Hotline. The next Hotline operator’s training is scheduled for April 5, 8 and 9. If you’re interested in the Hotline or in any other volunteer activity, please call Mark Owens at 415-558-8669 x218 or email volunteer@projectinform.org. Former Hotline Volunteer Supports Programs Year Round“I became involved with Project Inform in late 1989 as a Treatment Hotline volunteer. It was mostly for selfish reasons: I wanted to know as much about treatment options as I could to help my partner, Vance. After he died in 1992, my work at Project Inform became even more important to me. I was able to learn firsthand how important Project Inform is to literally thousands of people around the world. In 1995 a new work schedule prevented me from continuing on the Hotline. However, I still view Project Inform as one of the few really effective treatment and advocacy organizations in the country. Because I don’t have the time to volunteer myself, I contribute to Project Inform to help support the work of the hundreds of talented and dedicated people who do have the time. Thank you, volunteers!” David Schwab Steadfast support from Pledge Partners like David Schwab enables Project Inform to fulfill its mission year round. Becoming a Pledge Partner is easy. Just decide the amount you want to pledge and the number of installments. Each installment is then automatically charged to your credit card or checking account, as you prefer. As a Pledge Partner, each month you will receive a copy of What’s New, Project Inform’s monthly treatment update. We encourage you to pledge an amount that qualifies you as a member of Partners In Hope, our major donor program. With a monthly pledge of $40 or more, you can enjoy special benefits like first-class mailings of PI Perspective, advanced event notice, and invitations to special receptions. Whether you choose $10 or $100 a month, being a Pledge Partner reaffirms your commitment to helping provide lifesaving information to people with HIV nationwide. For more information on becoming a Pledge Partner or a Partner In Hope member, please contact Morgan Mack-Rose at 415-558-8669 x210 or support@projectinform.org. Caring Counts: PI Volunteer Receives National AwardKate Sanger has volunteered at Project Inform since the fall of 1997. Working with classmates from San Francisco’s University High School on Saturdays, she helps process bulk mailings, make phone calls and pass out flyers. Further, Kate continues to write for the Volunteer Voice, our monthly volunteer newsletter. She also works at her high school to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS issues. In 1999, Kate applied for the Caring Counts Award, established three years ago by the National AIDS Fund and Metropolitan Life Foundation. Each year the program honors twenty young people whose leadership and community service has made a difference in the fight against HIV/AIDS. From over 8,000 applications, Kate was chosen as one of last year’s recipients. Kate, her mother, and father were given an all-expense paid trip to Washington DC, where she joined the other recipients for a recognition event and skills building seminar. Project Inform is very proud of Kate Sanger. Congratulations Kate, and thank you for your extraordinary support! Meeting Explores Gender Differences in Viral LoadThe issue of gender differences in viral load gained momentum in December 1998 when a major study reported that women may progress to HIV disease at half the viral level of men. Since then, Project Inform has taken a leadership role in advancing research on this issue. Project Inform co-sponsored a meeting January 29, 2000 with the NIH’s Office of AIDS Research and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The all-day meeting convened HIV researchers, clinicians, and women with HIV to further review the research, identify gaps, and develop a complete research agenda around gender differences. One of the driving questions has been whether or not viral load differences have implications in women’s treatment decisions. While more research needs to be done to answer this question, the meeting concluded that there appear to be gender differences in viral load in early HIV infection—about the first five years after initial infection. This difference may indeed be significant and should be considered when starting treatment. The January meeting succeeded in solidifying the commitment of the research community to further explore the issue of gender differences in viral load. It also generated new ideas for HIV research of particular importance to women. “We need to better identify areas left out of our thinking because we are focused on particular measurements, values, and interpretations. The meeting was an important step in identifying these areas for HIV-positive women.” Claire Rappoport, Meeting Participant The 1999 Evening of HopeA Heartfelt Thank You to the Major Contributors of 1998 Evening of Hope. Event Underwriter Presenter Tables Benefactor Tables Patron Tables Supporter Tables Scholarship Tables Individual Presenters Individual Benefactors Host Committee Members |
PAST ISSUES#9 March 2000 |
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Street, San Francisco, CA 94103 415-558-8669 |
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