Building a Future for At-Risk Families and Youth

Although Russia is a country with abundant natural resources and a growing economy, social services for vulnerable populations remain poorly funded, and many people still lack adequate access to medical care and other services.  In Russia, thousands of children are neglected, abandoned, and living on the streets, while an estimated 420,000 live in institutions.  With the one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics in the world, Russia also faces high rates of abandonment of babies born to HIV-positive mothers.

Supporting at-risk youth
Since 1994, HealthRight International has been working in St. Petersburg to provide innovative and replicable community-based services to street and at-risk children and youth.  HealthRight programs provide safe places for young people to access a range of support services and help youth find alternatives to living on the streets or in institutions.  HealthRight works with local partners to build access to comprehensive case management services, which includes counseling and access to crisis and transitional housing.  To ensure clients have the opportunity to live in a supportive environment, HealthRight facilitates foster family placement and the restoration of family support.  HealthRight is also working to address alarmingly high rates of HIV-infection among street and at-risk children and youth in St. Petersburg, through the development and implementation of innovative prevention and treatment models.
 
Helping HIV-positive mothers care for themselves and their children
HIV-positive women in Russia face tremendous stigma, have limited knowledge about HIV transmission or treatment, and often learn their HIV status during labor without adequate support or counseling.  In response to these challenges and the consequent rising rates of infant abandonment among HIV-positive women in Russia, HealthRight created the MAMA+ project.  Since its launch in 2005, MAMA+ has empowered hundreds of HIV-positive mothers to access services to promote their own wellbeing and to support them in caring for their children in the family environment.  MAMA+ is serving as a model for similar projects in the region and as far away as Vietnam.  MAMA+ builds access to vital health and social services for often disenfranchised HIV-positive mothers and their children, while helping mothers to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to keep their families together. 

In order to ensure the sustainability of the MAMA+ project and to reach new populations in need of services, HealthRight also works closely with public authorities to train providers in best practices developed through the MAMA+ project.

Comprehensive and long-term solutions
To ensure project sustainability and provide support to our partners, HealthRight co-founded a local nonprofit organization, Doctors to Children, for joint implementation of many projects.  HealthRight’s community-based services have also strengthened the local government’s support for child welfare and human rights, and have created vital connections between public services, local organizations, and people in need.

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