KAKAMEGA, Kenya, January 18 /PRNewswire/ --
- Much Needed Health Facility Completed By The Vestergaard Frandsen Company
A ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring Kenyan Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi, South African musician Yvonne Chaka Chaka, and others was held today for the Emusanda Health Centre, marking the beginning of a brighter future for rural Kenyans who recently learned they had HIV. The centre will ensure that local residents have access to high quality medical care and counseling. It was rehabilitated and equipped by Vestergaard Frandsen, the company that also developed and financed the communitywide HIV testing campaign at which the residents learned they were HIV positive.
The campaign, formally called the Integrated Prevention Demonstration, was held in Lurambi district from September 16-22, 2008. It successfully tested more than 80% of the population for HIV and delivered technologies for preventing malaria, HIV and water-borne disease free of charge to local residents in an unprecedented time frame. These products were bundled in a lifesaving CarePack(TM), which provided a strong incentive for participation. The CarePack(TM) included a PermaNet(R) bed net and LifeStraw(R) water purifier manufactured by Vestergaard Frandsen, as well as educational materials and condoms. The CarePack(TM) concept is designed to provide products lasting three years and reducing the need for short-term repeat interventions crucial for cost efficiency when working with large populations.
The Kenyan Ministry of Health was an official partner in the IPD campaign, and MOH-trained counselors conducted the testing. More than 50,000 residents participated in the IPD, and nearly all took a voluntary HIV test. Among those tested, 2,016 learned they were HIV positive. Of all people tested, 3% of males tested positive for HIV, 7% of females.
We're pleased to report that the IPD campaign was so successful that the Lurambi district is likely to be the first area of rural Africa that meets the international targets for HIV testing, said Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen, CEO of the family-owned company that bares his name. But because it was so successful in helping rural Kenyans learn their HIV status, we felt an obligation to ensure that those who were positive had access to excellent health care right in their own community.
The company's sense of obligation extended to rehabilitating and fully equipping the long-planned health center in the village of Emusanda. The company also donated funds to fully staff the health centre with medical personnel.
Vestergaard Frandsen is an international company specializing in complex emergency response and disease control products. The company operates under a unique Humanitarian Entrepreneurship business model. This profit for a purpose approach has turned humanitarian responsibility into its core business. Vestergaard Frandsen was founded in 1957 and has since evolved into a multinational leader focused on helping to achieve the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals. For more information please visit www.vestergaard-frandsen.com.
Contact: Peter Cleary, Communications Director Office +1-212-984-1026, Cell +1-347-653-5857; Email pc@lifestraw.com
Peter Cleary, Communications Director, Office, +1-212-984-1026, or Cell, +1-347-653-5857, pc@lifestraw.com
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