This Mother's Day, honor a special woman in your life by giving health and hope to HIV-positive mothers and their babies in sub-Saharan Africa through mothers2mothers (m2m) third annual Double Your Mommy campaign. m2m will let her know the thoughtful gift you made in her name by sending her a uniquely heart-warming video message from a few of the adorable HIV-free children of our Mentor Mothers (deadline May 9th). What's more, your gift will have twice the impact!
Major progress has been made over the last decade towards eliminating pediatric AIDS, yet almost 700 children are still infected with HIV each day. Ninety percent of these children live in sub-Saharan Africa, and nearly all of them acquire HIV from their mothers during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding. Half of these children will die before age two if the virus is untreated. These outcomes are unnecessary and unacceptable. No baby should be born with HIV and no mother should die of AIDS.
mothers2mothers (m2m) trains, employs, and empowers mothers living with HIV as Mentor Mothers to eliminate the transmission of HIV from mothers to babies and improve the health of women and their families. These peer educators work alongside doctors and nurses in understaffed health centers to provide essential health education and support to HIV-positive pregnant women and new mothers. They are rigorously trained and paid, which benefits not only their families but also their communities.
Deploying mothers as frontline healthcare workers creates stronger health systems and healthier communities. The women that Mentor Mothers serve are more likely to take antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV and protect their health. Further, the infants of mothers in m2m's programs are more likely to receive ARVs to protect them from HIV and take an early infant diagnosis test to determine their status than other infants born to HIV-positive mothers.