HIV and AIDS responses of health care training institutions in the Pacific Islands--a literature review.

The purpose of this review paper is to provide information on the current roles of Pacific health care training institutions response to the HIV pandemic and to identify ways to scale up their response. The evidence presented here comes primarily from few published papers unpublished literature and anecdotal evidence through interviews with health care training institute staff in the region. Studies from high prevalence countries in the Sub - Sahara African and Caribbean Countries reveal that higher tertiary institutions played an important role in the fight against HIV through the development of HIV related policies research partnership networks community awareness treatment and care services and curriculum in response to the pandemic. While these responses were initiated at a time when incidence had seemed to reach an uncontrollable level the processes generated many important lessons. Very little is known about the response of health care training institutions in the Pacific. Detailed studies need to be implemented to assess and verify the level of responses in the health care training institutions. What is needed now is political will and resources to support and scale up HIV responses at Pacific health care training institutions.