Help Destitute Moms with AIDS Care for Their Kids

2011 First Quarter Update

Mark visited Cambodia in November 2010  where he met with our Home Care Coordinator and Team  to review the status of each family in the FSP.  All operational aspects of the FSP remain  as described in the program description . As a part of his visit, Mark also visited almost all of the families currently enrolled in the FSP.  This  quarterly visit by Mark is a standard practice and it is done in addition to the weekly visits that the Home Care Team  makes  to each family.  Each family’s status is reviewed and the educational progress of the children is discussed along with any other issues that may need additional attention.

In December, after the completion of  this trip, Mark learned of a   significant development that will seriously impact the  FSP families and program.  

Due to a  recent policy  change  by the  UN’s Global Fund ( for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria)  and the large medical NGOs which  administer Global Fund services in Cambodia , patients, including the poorest, will now be required to pay small fees for services which were previously free, such as  required blood tests and  doctor visits. This a serious development for patients for whom an additional unplanned expense of even  $ 5 to $ 10 per month  could prevent their continued participation  in the Global Fund’s  program to obtain  life saving  anti-retroviral medications.

For FSP families, living on the very edge of survival, without increased  financial support from our program,  these small fees will confront them  with  a choice of  seeking the  medical care essential to their continuing survival or  of  feeding their children. 

This alarming development could not have come at a worse time.  Food price inflation in the developing world already threatens the ability  of many  families to maintain a level   adequate nutrition necessary for  survival.

At a time when our  FSP budget is already strained by rising inflation and the difficult   fundraising environment,  we will need   to increase the monthly allocation to our FSP families to pay these medical fees or face the simple fact that  hungry poor families will choose food over medical care,  an action which will inevitably lead to a rise in mortality and orphaned children.  Consequently, you will note that our program support amounts have increased.

The  FSP  2010 budget year has been  completed, but the GlobalGiving site does not offer an easy way for us to distinguish from 2010 budget needs vs 2011 unless we repost our project.

The  2011 annual budget for the FSP is now projected at $ 106,000 ( $118 per patient family.)   At the present time we have raised $32,000 from various donors, leaving us with substantial funding needs.

When including  a portion  of the costs of fundraising  via the GlobalGiving site, this means we will now  assume a monthly cost of $ 125 per patient family.

We are most grateful for your continued support of the AIDS Patient Family Support Program.