Conference Scholarships: Scholarships are being offered at the11th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion to increase participation on the part of advocates, practitionersand researchers involved in injury prevention and safetypromotion, coming primarily from low or middle-income countries.

To increase the number of scholarships provided the vast majorityare likely to be awarded as partial scholarships, see criteria six. Emphasis will be given to applicants that can demonstrate support from their own organisations/countries.

Application Requirements

• Each candidate must meet each of the criteria noted below.
• Only complete applications submitted before Wednesday 14
• March 2012 will be assessed.

Applicants could be required by the Scholarship Committee to supply additional information.

The following evidence must be provided by candidates in their application:

• Curriculum vitae (maximum 1x A4 page)
• Letter motivating application (maximum 250 words)
• Whether full or partial support is requested. Details oncandidate’s contribution (food, lodging and travel expenses)
• Title of abstract submitted for oral presentation or poster
• Has the applicant participated in the World Health Organization’s MENTOR-VIP programme?

Criteria 1: Are you contributing to the progress of knowledge?Your abstract and letter of motivation will be judged on originality and pertinence.

Criteria 2: What is your experience?

Please detail your affiliation to an official institution in thefield, years of experience in the field of safety promotion andinjury prevention, teaching experience in the field, studies and research in the field of safety promotion and injury prevention in your CV and letter of motivation.

Criteria 3: Has your work been published or have you beenactively involved in other activities aimed at preventing injuries or promoting safety?

E.g. published in scientific journals, contributed to the planning of promotion/prevention programmes, and have delivered policy/promotion/prevention/advocacy programmes.

This information must be detailed in your CV.

Criteria 4: How are you contributing to the 11th WorldConference?

E.g. presenting an oral presentation or a poster as first or second author, is a Conference committee member, or workshop chair. You will be judged on the basis of your abstract.

Criteria 5: How will you contribute to safety promotion and injury prevention improvement when returning to your country?

E.g. potential to contribute to the transfer of knowledge and tothe development of new research and intervention tools. This information must be included in your letter of motivation.

Criteria 6: Are you willing to make a partial financial contribution?

E.g. registration fees, accommodation and living expenses, travel expenses

Criteria 7: Have you received a scholarship for previous Safety conferences?

For more information and scholarship applications, see: Conference and International Meeting Scholarships

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Research projects should be aimed at understanding and controlling diseases (either human or animal) of relevance to local, national or global health.

Fellowship Eligibility

Applications are only accepted in the Public Health and TropicalMedicine Interview Committee remit. This covers research oninfectious and non-communicable diseases within the fields ofpublic health and tropical medicine that is aimed at understanding and controlling diseases (either human or animal) of relevance to local, national or global health.

This can include laboratory based molecular analysis of field orclinical samples, but projects focused solely on studies in vitro or using animal models will not normally be considered under this scheme.

You must be a national or legal resident of a low- and middle–income country, and be either a:

• graduate in a subject relevant to public health or tropical medicine (for example; biomedical or social science, veterinary medicine, physics, chemistry or mathematics) with a PhD and at least five years’ postdoctoral experience, or
• medical graduate with a higher qualification equivalent to membership of the UK Royal College of Physicians (i.e. qualified to enter higher specialist training), or be recognised as a specialist within a relevant research area, and have at least five years’ research experience.

Applicants who do not have a PhD but who are educated to first degree or Master’s level and have substantial research experience, as evidenced by their publication record, may be considered.

Fellowship Applications

Fellowships are for up to five years in the first instance and provide support that includes:

• a basic salary
• research expenses (e.g. consumables, equipment, collaborativetravel, research assistance, technical support, fieldwork and data collection)
• training costs where appropriate and justified
• an inflation allowance and support to attend scientific meetings.

Contributions to costs of the project that are directly incurredby the overseas institution may also be provided.

The salary should normally be based on the pay scales of the employing institution and must be justified by the head of theinstitution.

The salary level should be appropriate for the holder of a competitive grant and allow him/her to focus fulltime on research.

If the fellow is already in receipt of a salary from the hostinstitution, the host institution may use the salary to pay fora replacement member of staff while we provide the fellow’s salary for the duration of the fellowship.

It is not expected that the fellow will hold a salary in addition to the one provided by the Trust.

Overseas allowances will be provided for periods of training or collaborative research spent outside the home institution country, where appropriate.

Research-dedicated costs (excluding salary costs) should not exceed £100 000 per annum.

This fellowship is subject to competitive rolling scientific review every five years, and will be renewed on the basis that the Trust and the host institution will jointly fund the Senior Fellow’s basic employment costs through a partnership arrangement for the duration of any renewal period.

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HIV & Drug Use Fellowships: The International AIDS Society (IAS)has established a research fellowship programme focusing on HIVand drug use, with the goal of contributing to advances in the scientific understanding of drug use and HIV, while fosteringinternational collaborative research on HIV and drug use.

The fellowship programme is awarded as a stipend of US$75,000 in two categories: to a junior scientist for 18-month post-doctoraltraining, or to a well-established HIV researcher for an eight-month-long professional development training at leading host institutes excelling in HIV-related drug use research.

Fellowship Eligibility

Post-doctoral training: Junior investigators with a doctoral degree (e.g., PhD, MD) obtained no more than six years before the time of application in the fields of behavioural and social sciences, biological sciences, chemistry, engineering, mathematics, medicine, physics or public health (other disciplines may also be considered) are eligible.

Applicants must hold a doctorate degree or equivalent before the start of the fellowship, but not necessarily when applying.

Medical doctors who obtained a MD degree no more than eight years ago and who do not have extended research experience can beallowed to apply to a post-doctoral fellowship.

Professional development training: The fellowship is geared towards well-established HIV or drug use scientists who are no currently active in the field of HIV-related drug use research, with a minimum of seven years’ experience beyond post-doctoral level, and with a documented scientific record that includes peer-reviewed publications.

• Applications are encouraged from any country, but preference will be given to applicants from low- and middle-income countries.
• All applicants must choose a mentor in an institution different from their current institution.
• Applicants must be able to start their fellowships before 1 June for application received by February.
• Applications must be completed in English.

Applicants must have chosen an appropriate mentor who holds an established post for the duration of the fellowship and has a track record in research and training in HIV and drug use.

Applicants must confirm that the host institute and the mentor can guarantee that space and facilities will be made available for the prospective fellow if he/she is successful in obtaining the fellowship.

Duration: Fellowships must be served continuously for the duration of the award.

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“It has taken the world ten years to achieve this level of momentum,” says Gottfried Hirnschall, Director of WHO’s HIV Department.  “There is now a very real possibility of getting ahead of the epidemic. But this can only be achieved by both sustaining and accelerating this momentum over the next decade and beyond.”

Advances in HIV science and programme innovations over the past year add hope for future progress. In times of economic austerity it will be essential to rapidly apply new science, technologies and approaches to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of HIV programmes in countries.

The report highlights what is already working:

• Improved access to HIV testing services enabled 61% of pregnant women in eastern and southern Africa to receive testing and counseling for HIV – up from 14% in 2005.

• Close to half (48%) of pregnant women in need receive effective medicines to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) in 2010.

• Antiretroviral therapy (ART), which not only improves the health and well-being of the infected people but also stops further HIV transmission, is available now for 6.65 million people in low- and middle-income countries, accounting for 47% of the 14.2 million people eligible to receive it.

When people are healthier, they are better able to cope financially. The report acknowledges that investment in HIV services could lead to total gains of up to US$34 billion by 2020 in increased economic activity and productivity, more than offsetting the costs of ART programmes.

“2011 has been a game changing year. With new science, unprecedented political leadership and continued progress in the AIDS response, countries have a window of opportunity to seize this momentum and take their responses to the next level,” said Paul De Lay, Deputy Executive Director, Programme, UNAIDS. “By investing wisely, countries can increase efficiencies, reduce costs and improve on results. However, gains made to date are being threatened by a decline in resources for AIDS.”

The report also points to what still needs to be done:

• More than half of the people who need antiretroviral therapy in low- and middle-income countries are still unable to access it. Many of them do not even know that they have HIV.

• Despite the growing body of evidence as to what countries need to focus on to make a real impact on their epidemics, some are still not tailoring their programmes for those who are most at risk and in need. In many cases, groups including adolescent girls, people who inject drugs, men who have sex with men, transgender people, sex workers, prisoners and migrants remain unable to access HIV prevention and treatment services.

Worldwide, the vast majority (64%) of people aged 15-24 living with HIV today are female. The rate is even higher in sub-Saharan Africa where girls and young women make up 71% of all young people living with HIV – essentially because prevention strategies are not reaching them.

Key populations are continually marginalized. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia, more than 60% of those living with HIV are people who inject drugs. But injecting drug users account for only 22% of those receiving ART.

Although better services to prevent mother to child transmission of HIV have averted some 350 000 new infections among children, some 3.4 million children are living with HIV – many of whom lack HIV treatment. Only about one in four children in need of HIV treatment in low- and middle-income countries received it in 2010, as compared to 1 in 2 adults.

“While there have been gains in treatment, care and support available to adults, we note that progress for children is slower,” says Leila Pakkala, Director of the UNICEF Office in Geneva.  “The coverage of HIV interventions for children remains alarmingly low. Through concerted action and equity-focused strategies, we must make sure that global efforts are working for children as well as adults”.

HIV in regions and countries

In 2010, HIV epidemics and responses in different parts of the world vary with shifting trends, progress rates and outcomes.

Sub-Saharan Africa recorded the biggest overall annual increase–30%–in the number of people accessing ART. Three countries (Botswana, Namibia and Rwanda) have achieved universal coverage (80%) for HIV prevention, treatment and care services. The regional ART coverage rate stood at 39% at the end of 2010. Approximately 50% of pregnant women living with HIV receive treatment to prevent mother-to child transmission of HIV. And 21% of children in need are able to get paediatric HIV treatments. There were 1.9 million new infections in the region, where 22.9 million people are living with HIV. There are some major disparities in progress between different parts of the region. Countries in Eastern and Southern Africa have reached much higher coverage rates for ART (56%) and PMTCT (64%) than countries in Western and Central Africa (30% and 18% respectively).

Asia shows a stabilizing epidemic overall, but new infections are very high in some communities. Of the 4.8 million people living with HIV in Asia, nearly half (49%) are in India. Antiretroviral treatment coverage is increasing with 39% of adults and children in need of HIV treatment having access. Coverage of PMTCT services is relatively low- (16%).

Eastern Europe and Central Asia presents a dramatic growth in HIV, with new infections increasing by 250% in the past decade. Over 90% of these infections occur in just two countries: Russia and Ukraine. The region demonstrates high coverage rates for PMTCT and paediatric HIV treatment (with 78% and 65% coverage rates respectively). However, ART coverage is very low at 23%, particularly among the most affected people- the ones who inject drugs.

Middle East and North Africa records the highest number of HIV infections ever in the region (59 000) in 2010, which represents a 36% increase over the past year. Coverage of HIV services are very low in the region: 10% for ART, 5% for paediatric treatment and 4% for PMTCT.

Latin America and the Caribbean have a stabilizing epidemic with 1.5 million living with HIV in Latin America and 200 000 in the Caribbean. HIV is predominantly among networks of men who have sex with men in Latin America. In the Caribbean though, women are the more affected group accounting for 53% of people living with HIV. The region has ART coverage of 63% for adults and 39% for children.  Coverage for effective PMTCT regimen is relatively high at 74%.

Sustaining the HIV response through the next 10 years

• Countries are already showing marked efficiency gains in HIV programmes: South Africa reduced HIV drug costs by more than 50% over a two-year period by implementing a new tendering strategy for procurement. Uganda saved US$2 million by shifting to simpler paediatric regimens. Such efficiencies are promoted throughTreatment 2.0 – an initiative launched by WHO and UNAIDS in 2010 to promote simpler, cheaper and easier-to-deliver HIV treatment and diagnostic tools, combined with decentralized services that are supported by communities.

• A WHO, UNAIDS, UNICEF “Elimination Initiative” aims to eliminate new HIV infections among children by 2015 and keep their mothers alive.

• WHO is developing new guidance on the strategic use of antiretroviral drugs for both prevention and treatment.

• WHO’s “Global Health Sector Strategy on HIV/AIDS, 2011-2015”, endorsed by the World Health Assembly in May 2011 highlights the importance of continuing efforts to optimize HIV treatment and “combination” prevention – the use of a range of different approaches to reduce people’s risk of infection.

The 2011 “Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Response” is the comprehensive report on both the epidemiology and progress rates in access to HIV services globally and in regions and countries. It has been jointly developed by WHO, UNICEF, UNAIDS, in collaboration with national and international partners.

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