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Summary of the NIH International Representatives MeetingNovember 13, 2007
Dr. James Herrington, Director, Division of International Relations, NIH Fogarty International Center (FIC), welcomed the NIH IC representatives to the Stone House. He introduced Dr. Michael P. Johnson, the new FIC Deputy Director to the IC representatives and noted that Dr. Johnson was coming from the Office of Global Health Affairs in DHHS, where he served as the DHHS liaison to the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. Dr. Herrington informed the group that Dr. Johnson previously served in HRSA as the Director of the Division of Training and Technical Assistance in HRSA's HIV/AIDS Bureau. He noted that Dr. Johnson was awarded his M.D. from Tufts University Medical School and his MPH from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. Dr. Johnson is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease. IC representatives were next asked to identify their institutes and international research interests for Dr. Johnson before he began his presentation. Latest Developments: The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR): Dr. Johnson provided an overview of PEPFAR noting that it is a commitment of $15 billion over five years (2003-2008) to fight the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. It is the largest international health initiative ever developed by one nation to address a single disease. The program aims to provide antiretroviral treatment (ART) to approximately 2 million HIV-infected people in resource-poor countries and to develop ways to prevent future infections. He also highlighted both positive and less-than-positive views of the Program by its supporters and detractors. Dr. Johnson noted that from 2004 to 2007, 1.1 million individuals were receiving ARV treatment under PEPFAR. However, during that same timeframe, more than 4.1 million people have been identified as becoming infected. He stressed that PEPFAR will not be able to out-treat the rise in new infections. Moreover, he noted that while much of the PEPFAR funding consists of "new" dedicated monies, a proportion of PEPFAR funds, including research conducted by NIH, are actually "old" monies that have already been in the Congress appropriations process for several years before PEPFAR was introduced. Next, Dr. Johnson outlined the several focal areas for the next 5-year PEPFAR period (2008-2013) which could potentially be funded at $30 billion or more. Among these areas: Can PEPFAR achieve success in prevention of HIV infection; how broad should funding be in the next phase; what is the appropriate role for research, and for NIH, within PEPFAR; will PEPFAR help achieve sustainable increase and commitment to global health issues; what will PEPFAR's effect be on non-HIV/AIDS infrastructure; will host-country political commitment help to sustain PEPFAR programs? Based on Dr. Johnson's presentation, the IC Representatives suggested that Dr. Johnson meet with HIV/AIDS program leaders in the various ICs to discuss further NIH research related to PEPFAR programs. International Advanced Networks: Focus on Global Health Applications: Dr. Herrington next introduced Ms. Susie Baker, Research Leader, Global Ring Network for Advanced Applications Development (GLORIAD). Ms. Baker noted that GLORIAD is an advanced science internet network launched in January 2004 by the U.S., Russia and China which has subsequently expanded to include the Republic of Korea, Canada, and the Netherlands. GLORIAD is built on a fiber-optic ring of networks around the northern hemisphere of the earth, providing scientists, educators and students with advanced networking tools that improve communications and data exchange, enabling active, daily collaboration on common problems. She noted that with GLORIAD, the scientific community can move unprecedented volumes of valuable data effortlessly, stream video and communicate through quality audio- and video-conferencing. Ms. Baker underscored that the benefits of the GLORIAD network are shared with S&E communities throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas. GLORIAD provides more than a network; it provides a stable, persistent, non-threatening means of facilitating dialog and increased cooperation between nations. She highlighted several areas of scientific endeavor that are facilitated by GLORIAD and she asked the IC reps for ideas and suggestions for new areas in international health research that GLORIAD could facilitate in the future. IC reps were encouraged to contact Ms. Baker directly with any input they may have. Further information on GLORIAD is found at: www.gloriad.org. Next Meeting: Tentatively set for Tuesday, January 8, 2008, at 1 p.m. in the NIH Stone House. Attendance: Archives of Past IC Reps Meetings
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