National and Local Collaborations

GHESKIO works in partnership with the Haitian Ministry of Health.  The center is housed in government buildings and in turn provides technical advice to the Ministry of Health on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and sexually transmitted infections.  Major initiatives of GHESKIO’s partnership with the Ministry of Health include support for the Haitian Red Cross in maintaining blood safety, training for health care practitioners throughout the country in the treatment of sexually transmitted infections, the development of the Haitian HIV Care and Prevention Network, and the evaluation of HIV vaccine candidates.  GHESKIO also works in partnership with the Haitian Medical Association.  The first GHESKIO meeting was held at the offices of the Haitian Medical Association in 1982.  Since then, GHESKIO has collaborated with the Haitian Medical Association on many research and training projects. 

Pictured below is the inaugural ceremony for the official launching of HIV vaccine trials in Haiti on March 27, 2001, when the first vaccination was administered.  All of the Ministers of Health and Presidents of the Haitian Medical Association who contributed to the preparation of HIV vaccine trials in Haiti are present, including (front row from the left) former Minister of Health Dr. Henrys, former Minister of Health Dr. Malebranche, Co-Principle Investigator for the GHESKIO site Dr. Deschamps, President of the Haitian Medical Association Dr. Roy, former Minister of Health Dr. Gédéon, and Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Health and former President of the Haitian Medical Association Dr. Suréna.  In the back row (from the left) are the General Director of the Ministry of Health Dr. Charles, Principle Investigator and GHESKIO Director Dr. Pape, and former Minster of Health Dr. Molière.

Regional Collaborations

AIDS in the Caribbean is a regional epidemic with substantial migration of HIV high risk groups between countries.  The Caribbean is in need of a regional response to the epidemic, and GHESKIO is building regional ties in order to create a united front.  GHESKIO is one of the Centers for Disease Control’s five Caribbean comprehensive HIV care training sites.  Each site is responsible for providing practical training in the provision of HIV care and antiretroviral therapy to clinicians from the Caribbean.  GHESKIO Director Dr. Jean Pape, the Haitian Ministry of Health, and counterparts from other Caribbean nations have formed a combined research council to define a common HIV research agenda through the Trans-Caribbean Research Network.

International Collaborations

GHESKIO has collaborated with Cornell University since its inception.  Drs. Warren Johnson and Daniel Fitzgerald are the principal collaborators for Cornell and GHESKIO Director Dr. Jean Pape is a Professor at Cornell.  GHESKIO has also collaborated with Vanderbilt University for ten years, and Dr. Peter Wright is the principal collaborator for Vanderbilt.  The Fondation Rodolphe Mérieux and its President Alain Mérieux have also collaborated with GHESKIO for five years.  Other research and training collaborators include Harvard University, the University of California at Berkely, Meharry Medical College, Johns Hopkins University, the Pasteur Institute of Paris, the New York City Department of Health, the Hastings Center for Bioethics, and the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center. 

GHESKIO’s mission of service, research, and training is supported by many international organizations, including the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, the United Nations Global Fund Against AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Fogarty International Center, the French Cooperation, UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States Agency for International Development, the United Nations Population Fund, the United Nations Development Program, and the World Bank.