Since the first public health programs in Cambodia in 1992, Health has been a major sector of PFD's work. Within the broad range of health issues, PFD specifically focuses on:

HIV/AIDS

Malaria

Reproductive Health

 

HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS education, prevention, and care and support has been a component of PFD's programs in both Nigeria and Cambodia.

In Nigeria, PFD and its partner organizations have produced many important impacts, including:

• Reaching over 100,000 community members and more than 1,000 community leaders with reproductive health and HIV/AIDS education and disbursing over 35,000 small loans to (mainly) females, generally ranging in loan size from $50-200;
• Establishment of two vocational training centers in Nasawara state for teen-age and young adult AIDS orphans and other youths made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS;
• Design and production of a manual for home-based care of PLWHA;
• Training of 140 community-based volunteers to care for over 3,600 PLWHA.

NEW Project:
Counseling, Care and Antiretroviral Mentoring Project (CAMP)

In 2008, PFD won competitive funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under the President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and thus expanded its scope of activities by adding a comprehensive package of care and support for PLWHA.

The project, “Counseling, Care, and Antiretroviral Program (CAMP), focuses on Adult and Pediatric Care and Treatment, Antiretroviral Treatment, care for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission, Prevention and HIV Testing and Counseling. 

CAMP has so far reached or exceeded most of its ambitious Year One targets, including providing 10,000 people with HIV/AIDS prevention messages; 7,000 people with HIV testing and counseling; 600 people with antiretroviral (ARV) drugs and other treatments; 180 pregnant women with ARV prophylaxis; and 200 orphans and vulnerable children with care.

A key theme of CAMP is continuous skill development through several in-house and external training sessions to ensure quality standards of service and care delivery.  CAMP staff have assisted clinics and community outreach coordinators to establish systems of efficient, sustainable health management and treatment. 

The lasting impact of this program, in addition to thousands of individuals given prevention messages, treatment, and support, will be an enhanced community and health system capacity to use local resources, fight the AIDS epidemic, care for those affected, and engage and expand local expertise to improve the quality of response at the local and national levels.

PAST HIV/AIDS WORK:

In Cambodia, PFD worked closely with the Kratie Provincial Health Department, local schools and Health Centers, and Youth Centers (established by PFB) to provide training and educational sessions on reproductive and sexual health issues, specifically HIV/AIDS. 

Through this program, PFD trained 727 Community-Based Distribution agents to sell condoms and oral contraceptive.  445 Influential Male and Female Educators in methods to prevent Sexuall-Transmitted Infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS were trained through PFD's program from 2003 - 2006. 

These peer educators link clients with health centers and staff who can provide key services, such as family planning, confidential HIV and STI testing, confidential counseling, and referral to treatment.  In 2005, PFD constructed a Voluntary Counseling and Testing facility in the Chhlong District of Kratie.

MALARIA

Malaria education and prevention is the cornerstone of PFD's work in Cambodia.  PFD's program is funded by the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as well as USAID.  As in all of its programs, PFD's approach is based on collaboration with national and local agents, such as the Ministry of Health and National Malaria Center, and Provincial Health Department and Malaria Units, as well as community members, including teachers, school children, village volunteers and health staff, and health community authorities.  These networks of people works together to implement malaria prevention activities and to support community capacity to design and implement activities specific to their own context.

PFD relies on proven interventions to achieve success.  One such method is anti-malaria bed and hammock nets, perhaps the most effective tools in prevention of malaria.  PFD, and Provincial Malaria Units, regularly distribute these nets and re-impregnate them through campaigns and special events, like Malaria Week. 

Malaria Week

Malaria Week is a highly successful PFD innovation that involves community members, children, and government officials working towards malaria prevention and education.  In 2008, the Week's activities included children's drama performances, net distribution, rapid response malaria testing, and malaria education videos.

In western Cambodia, where multi-drug resistant malaria has been on th rise, PFD and the University Research Corporation are implementing a USAID-funded Malaria Control in Cambodia (MCC) project.  The aim is to improve local Ministry of Health staff capacity in the prevention, identification, and treatment of malaria; quality control and speed in identifying actual malarial cases and in the quality of drugs and drug administration; and education of vulnerable populations.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

In addition to malaria control and prevention, PFD has focused on a number of reproductive health initiatives in Cambodia.  Since 2004, PFD's United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA)-funded Youth Friendly Sexual and Reproductive Health Program has been increasing access to high-quality reproductive health information and services for young people (ages 10-24) in peri-urban areas of Kratie Province. 

This project is directly tied to PFD's HIV/AIDS initiatives in Cambodia as both address key issues of reproductive and sexual health and the prevention of disease or infection.  PFD participates in regular program review meetings with UNFPA, Provincial Health Department staff, and with local and international NGOs, including the Reproductive Health Alliance of Cambodia and CARE International.

MICRO-CREDIT AND HEALTH

In Nigeria, PFD utilizes small groups, stemming from its micro-credit activities, as venues to communicate reproductive and other health information.  PFD started its reproductive health programs in Nigerian in 2001, funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.  Since then, PFD has built capacity of 15 local NGOs to integrate family planning and reproductive health activities with additional and traditionally unrelated services, such as micro-finance.  These newly empowered NGOs offer a range of services, including counseling on safe motherhood, specifically ante- and post-natal health care and delivery services by trained midwives, as well as the provision of condoms, the presence of a midwife at over 1,300 births, and antenatal counseling to over 5,000 women.