WASHINGTON, DC (4 October 2005) — Naomi Rutenberg has been appointed program director of the Horizons Program, leading a team of US-based and international organizations working to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and mitigate its impact on individuals and communities. Directed by the Population Council and funded by the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the program designs, implements, and evaluates innovative service-delivery strategies. Rutenberg has previously held other senior management positions for Horizons.
Rutenberg conducts social, behavioral, and operations research on demographic, reproductive health, and HIV/AIDS issues. A sample of her previous studies includes:
- developing strategies to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV, with a special focus on initiatives that welcome community involvement;
- addressing operational challenges to diagnosing and managing pediatric HIV infection
- assessing the impact of HIV on South African youth, paying particular attention to vulnerable girls;
- evaluating the effectiveness of livelihood projects to improve the reproductive health of Zambian youth;
- expanding male support of women's reproductive health in Kenya;
- surveying the quality of vasectomy services in Tanzania;
- strengthening the capacity of local organizations to address youth reproductive health needs in Botswana; and
- conducting an international review of programs seeking to integrate HIV into reproductive health services.
Rutenberg has worked with government leaders and clinicians in 15 countries on three continents.
As Horizons Program Director, Rutenberg will lead and manage a multidisciplinary professional team in the United States and overseas; develop and implement the program agenda; and conduct research to identify, support, and enhance sustainable and cost-effective responses to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
The Population Council is an international, nonprofit, nongovernmental research organization that seeks to improve the well-being and reproductive health of current and future generations around the world and to help achieve a humane, equitable, and sustainable balance between people and resources. The Council conducts biomedical, social science, and public health research and helps build research capacities in developing countries. Established in 1952, the Council is governed by an international board of trustees. Its New York headquarters supports a global network of regional and country offices. ### Media contacts
Melissa May, APR: mmay@popcouncil.org +1 212 339 0525
Diane Rubino: drubino@popcouncil.org +1 212 339 0617 |
