The Ultimate HIV Prevention Tool
On October 7th-10th, experts from around the world gathered together in Barcelona to discuss progress made in working toward the ultimate HIV prevention tool – the AIDS Vaccine. Organized by the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise and HIVACAT, the conference is the world’s only scientific meeting dedicated to HIV Vaccine Research where researchers present several recent advances in the field. Under the theme “Progress, partnership and perseverance,” this year’s conference was also a key opportunity for Spain to highlight its commitment to HIV vaccine research.
Salud por Derecho participated in the conference by organizing a satellite session entitled “Catalyzing a Health Innovation System that works for all.” The goal of this session was to present the Catalytic Project, an initiative that is engaging the scientific community in the debate about the changes needed in order to improve the current biomedical R&D system. We analyzed the structural failures of the R&D system, including the perspective from researchers and the possible implementation in practice of some already existing alternatives to guide R&D so that it responds to the health needs of individuals, ensuring affordable access to biomedical products and facilitating innovation and scientific progress.
In addition, the HIV/AIDS vaccine field is a particularly interesting sector to develop this reflection given that HIV vaccines are technologies of global interest, not only for impoverished countries, and there are many initiatives, such as public-private partnerships and public research organizations dedicated to this work.
