[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 89 (Thursday, June 20, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4789-S4790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                 RECOGNIZING JHPIEGO'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY

 Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, today I wish to congratulate 
Jhpiego, a nonprofit global health affiliate of Johns Hopkins 
University, on the occasion of its 40th anniversary and recognize the 
organization for its tireless service in preventing the needless deaths 
of women and children throughout the developing world.
  Dr. Theodore M. King, the former chairman of the Johns Hopkins 
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, founded Jhpiego in 1973. The 
original intention was to share the latest technology, skills, and 
knowledge of women's health with health professionals from Latin 
America, Africa, and Asia by bringing them to Baltimore for training. 
But Jhpiego officials realized that they could have a greater impact by 
educating health care providers in the providers' own countries, so 
Jhpiego changed its focus to sustainability, to developing the capacity 
of countries to create a well-prepared network of health care 
professionals and a strong health system that they can build upon to 
care for themselves. As a result, Jhpiego and its more than 1,500 
employees have brought the resources

[[Page S4790]]

and technical expertise of Johns Hopkins to over 150 countries around 
the globe, creating tens of thousands of health champions who will 
deliver skilled care for generations to come.
  Jhpiego has proudly participated in the U.S. Government's flagship 
maternal and child health efforts for the past 15 years. The program, 
now known as the Maternal and Child Health Integrated Program, MCHIP, 
has made incredible progress in reducing maternal and child mortality, 
increasing access to reproductive health services and HIV testing and 
improving immunization and nutrition education in vulnerable countries 
such as Afghanistan, South Africa, and Rwanda.
  For 40 years, Jhpiego has worked in some of the most remote areas of 
the world--places without hospitals, electricity, or running water. 
Jhpiego officials and staff know the challenges of working and living 
in such conditions and use that insight to develop the next generation 
of extremely low-cost solutions that address many of the leading causes 
of death, such as cervical cancer, for women in low-resource settings. 
With regard to cervical cancer, Jhpiego has developed the ``single 
visit approach,'' SVA, which combines screening and, if abnormal cells 
are detected, treatment. The screening costs $5, and screening with 
treatment is $30.
  When Jhpiego began its work in Afghanistan in 2002 after the fall of 
the Taliban, the country's maternal death rate was the second highest 
in the world. There were only 467 midwives in a country with a 
population of 22 million and one functioning midwifery school. Today, 
more than 3,000 new midwives have graduated from 29 accredited, 
community, and hospital midwifery schools located throughout 
Afghanistan. This development has helped dramatically improve maternal 
mortality rates in Afghanistan and bring women into the workforce.
  In Mozambique, fewer than 25 percent of Mozambique's 22 million 
people currently know their HIV status. To address this problem, 
Jhpiego has helped over 900,000 people to be tested for HIV and 
counseled on their status by members of local health groups and faith-
based organizations in their homes.
  Mr. President, I ask the Senate to join me in recognizing the 
incredible accomplishments of Jhpiego, currently under the outstanding 
leadership of Dr. Leslie Mancuso, and congratulating the organization 
on its 40th anniversary. I am proud that Jhpiego is based in Maryland 
but has a truly global reach with regard to the lifesaving work it 
does.

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