Russian Women and HIV

The spread of the HIV among women – 33% of all the cases – is a serious problem. From 2000 to 2006 the number of HIV-positive pregnant women has multiplied by 13.3 times. This fact inevitably leads to the increased number of children born from HIV-positive mothers  ( total is 3,136 cases – this is every 5th child born from HIV-positive mothers in the Russian Federation). In the first half of 2006, 204 children were infected during pregnancy and birth from HIV-positive mothers.

HIV-positive women are not well-informed about medical, social, legal, psychological, social aspects of this problem. In the Sverdlovsk area there is no coordination and there are no ways of cooperation between different institutions: medical, social, educational, legal. There is no system of medical, social and psychological help to the HIV-positive mothers.