About Gheskio:

GHESKIO CENTER in Port-au-Prince, Haiti was the first institution in the world dedicated to the fight against HIV/AIDS. It was founded in the early 1980s, when a group of Haitian clinicians noticed a growing number of patients dying from Kaposi’s sarcoma and unusual opportunistic infections. In response, they founded the Haitian Group for the Study of Kaposi’s Sarcoma and Opportunistic Infections (GHESKIO).

In 1983, GHESKIO published their experiences in The New England Journal of Medicine, documenting the first cases of AIDS in a developing country. In 1987, GHESKIO was recognized as an official independent non-governmental organization by the Haitian Government. In 2000, the Haitian government designated GHESKIO a “Public Utility,” a status reserved for institutions “essential to the welfare of the Haitian people” such as the Red Cross. For more than twenty years, GHESKIO has served as the Haitian Government’s research and training center for HIV/AIDS, and it is now an internationally recognized center of excellence.

Located directly in one of the most affected areas of Port-au-Prince, GHESKIO suffered severe structural damage during the January 2010 earthquake. However, they immediately began providing care to the victims of the earthquake. GHESKIO provided emergency surgery and rehabilitation to over 3,000 victims, while continuing to provide HIV/AIDS treatment for over 22,000 patients. In addition, the GHESKIO campus has become a temporary home for 7,000 homeless residents of Port-au-Prince. Each family has been given a tent and access to clean water, as well as receiving security, nutrition, sanitation, education, jobs, and medical care from GHESKIO.
Now, in addition to continuing to provide humanitarian assistance, emergency care to those affected by the disaster, and life-saving medications to people with HIV/AIDS, it’s time for GHESKIO to focus on rebuilding. Through Dance for a Dream, we hope to raise funds to help them do so.

History:

Dr. Jean Pape is the founding and current Director of GHESKIO. In 1975, after the completion of his postdoctoral training in infectious diseases, Dr. Pape returned to his native Haiti to study child diarrhea. Dr. Pape noted an increase in adult mortality related to diarrhea and with GHESKIO published the first comprehensive description of AIDS in the developing world in 1983. Since then, he has become an international leader in efforts to implement programs for the prevention and control of AIDS and tuberculosis in Haiti and other resource-poor countries, providing counsel to international organizations on bioethics, health disparities, and global infectious disease. He has received numerous international awards for his work. In April 2002, French President Jacques Chirac awarded Dr. Pape the Legion of Honor Award for his “contribution to the improvement of the health of the Haitian people and that of people in the world.” Dr. Pape was elected to the United States National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine in June 2003. He most recently received the 2010 Carolos Slim Award in Health for Lifetime Achievement in Research.

GHESKIO’s commitment to service, research, and training has led to the expansion of many GHESKIO models to the national level. GHESKIO has expanded models for HIV care and prevention, treatment of sexually transmitted infections, care for diarrheal diseases, blood safety, AIDS treatment, and the prevention of congenital syphilis. Through the development of national programs to address major health issues, GHESKIO plays a catalytic role in improving public health in Haiti.

Dr. Jean Pape (left, holding award certificate) with Dr. Warren Johnson Jr., the B.H. Kean Professor of Tropical Medicine and chief of the Division of International Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Weill Cornell.