The International HIV/AIDS Alliance, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the
UNAIDS Secretariat welcome readers to this handbook.
Designed to be a useful resource for the different groups involved in treatment for HIV-related
conditions, the handbook is also an implicit tribute to these groups. It is a concrete
acknowledgement that, without their work, the global response to AIDS would be much
smaller – and much less effective – than it is today.
Groups of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
and community-based organizations (CBOs) have been at the forefront of prevention and care
since the world first became aware of the epidemic two decades ago. Instead of passively
leaving these tasks to the medical profession or public health authorities, they have become
partners in providing HIV-related commodities and services – and, in some places, they have
been the only providers. They have also courageously built roles for themselves as advocates
and teachers, changing the way the world thinks about HIV/AIDS and responds to the people
who live with it. In doing so, they have built hope, spread important skills and ensured better
delivery of HIV/AIDS-related services and commodities.
Recognizing that these groups remain a key resource in the global response, this handbook
aims to widen their participation even further by providing them with a useful collection of
information and tools. However, the word ‘providing’ implies one-way giving when, in fact,
the creation of this handbook has been a two-way process: while the Alliance, WHO and
UNAIDS Secretariat may be providing the finished product, the essential ‘raw material’ was
provided by dozens of individuals and groups in Africa and Asia. Their generous and
enthusiastic participation during the design and field-testing stages gave the handbook the
benefit of their experience and expertise, and kept it focused on the practical needs and
challenges of providing treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS.
This process echoes the creation of another book a decade ago – the AIDS Home Care
Handbook – which was published by WHO after extensive consultation with NGOs working
in HIV/AIDS care in developing countries. That pioneering book has been used all over the
world, freely adapted to fit widely different conditions in a variety of places.
This new handbook proceeds in the same spirit of partnership. The Alliance has contributed
its strong field experience and expertise in collaboration with local NGOs and CBOs. WHO
has overseen the technical content, in particular on drug management issues. The UNAIDS
Secretariat, as a global advocate for mobilizing NGOs’ and CBOs’ entry into the field of care,
initiated the handbook’s development, brought in the Alliance and many other NGOs and
CBOs, and provided funding.
It is hoped that this new handbook will prove as useful as the earlier book, which it does
not replace but complements. We hope that it will encourage groups already involved in
HIV/AIDS care to extend the services they provide, and that it will encourage other groups
(perhaps doing some other HIV-related activity, such as prevention and support, or in other
fields of health, such as family planning and reproductive health) to get involved.