World AIDS Day--the crisis continues
The worldwide HIV/AIDS epidemic continues to expand. According to UNAIDS , 33.3 million people live with HIV, including 2.5 million children. In 2009, some 2.6 million people became newly infected with the virus and an estimated 1.8 million people died from complications from AIDS. The great tragedy of this disease, which has already taken more lives than all casualties from World War II, is that it is largely preventable; furthermore many treatment alternatives can be employed but are not. In those places where there is not a base of shared community knowledge and attitude regarding the realities of HIV/AIDS transmission, prevention, and treatment, the disease will continue to spread at a growing rate. At left, KALA holds a health literacy discussion group with local women in the community Efforts to disseminate medicine and information can make a life-saving difference for millions. Unfortunately, these efforts have limited impact if not accompanied by an effective educational compo...