Project goals

The project aims at setting up a joint teaching programme lead by a project group in which the Swedish members will be nurses representing HIV care and hospital hygiene and similar competency from Russia. The project group will recruit suitable trainers, design a teaching programme and oversee the implementation.

It is aimed that the programme will be made available to head-nurses in above mentioned groups of nurses obligating them to spread their knowledge in their home district. Russia has the most rapidly raising HIV incidence in the world. At the end of 2002, there is estimated to be about 1 miljon HIV-positive Russians, most of them infected through intravenous drug use (IDU). There is no sign of any slowing-down. Most Russian health care workers (HCWs) are still unaccustomed to dealing with HIV-positive patients. The situation is very similar to the situation existing in Sweden 15 years ago. The problems include concern about own personal safety (often expressed also by spouses of the HCWs), lack of care routines, and inexperience in talking to patients about protecting others.

In Sweden, there exists a large group of nurses with decade-long experience in care for HIV patients. Many members in this group have expressed their willingness to participate in a programme to share this experience with their Russian counterparts. Comments
The present rapid spread of HIV infection in Russia is leaving much of the health care staff behind due to experience and skill. In many ways, the situation is similar to Sweden in the mid 80s. A wish has been expressed by representatives from the Russian nurses collective that Swedish nurses could share their experience and knowledge on a larger scale.
This knowledge would include care routine, knowledge of counselling and hospital hygiene, but also focus on preventive aspects of carefully informing already HIV- positive patients about measures not to infect others.

Results

The project aims at setting up a joint teaching programme lead by a project group in which the Swedish members will be nurses representing HIV care and hospital hygiene and similar competency from Russia. The project group will recruit suitable trainers, design a teaching programme and oversee the implementation.

It is aimed that the programme will be made available to head-nurses in above mentioned groups of nurses obligating them to spread their knowledge in their home district. Russia has the most rapidly raising HIV incidence in the world. At the end of 2002, there is estimated to be about 1 miljon HIV-positive Russians, most of them infected through intravenous drug use (IDU). There is no sign of any slowing-down. Most Russian health care workers (HCWs) are still unaccustomed to dealing with HIV-positive patients. The situation is very similar to the situation existing in Sweden 15 years ago. The problems include concern about own personal safety (often expressed also by spouses of the HCWs), lack of care routines, and inexperience in talking to patients about protecting others.

In Sweden, there exists a large group of nurses with decade-long experience in care for HIV patients. Many members in this group have expressed their willingness to participate in a programme to share this experience with their Russian counterparts. Comments
The present rapid spread of HIV infection in Russia is leaving much of the health care staff behind due to experience and skill. In many ways, the situation is similar to Sweden in the mid 80s. A wish has been expressed by representatives from the Russian nurses collective that Swedish nurses could share their experience and knowledge on a larger scale.
This knowledge would include care routine, knowledge of counselling and hospital hygiene, but also focus on preventive aspects of carefully informing already HIV- positive patients about measures not to infect others.

Location

Project Budget

3 957 500 Swedish Crowns.