Spanish-Language HIV/AIDS website for Women.

The Well Project announced the formal launch of a Spanish-language version of its website, www.thewellproject.org/es_US/, narrowing the gap in HIV/AIDS treatment education for a population disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

“Today we stand with Latinas, advocates, friends infected with and affected by HIV and AIDS to focus the spotlight on the devastation of this disease in the Latino community,” said Well Project founder Dawn Averitt Bridge, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1988. “In recent years, the number of women living with HIV has skyrocketed, and Latinas are affected over and
above most other groups. While this vulnerable population is growing, targeted women-specific information in Spanish has not kept up with the need.”

Latinas are among the groups with the steepest increase in AIDS cases, representing 21 percent of those diagnosed with AIDS in the United States in 2004, a figure vastly disproportionate to their presence in the overall population.

From 1999 to 2002, Latino men and women experienced a 26 percent rise in HIV diagnoses and estimated deaths climbed 17 percent during the same period. A Latina living in the United States is greater than three times more likely to have AIDS than a white woman. The Well Project’s Spanish-language site includes comprehensive information on all aspects of HIV/AIDS treatment including detailed descriptions of antiretroviral medications and their side effects, resources for successfully managing HIV alongside parental and professional responsibilities, and updates on the public policies that affect women
living with HIV in the U.S. and globally. With an emphasis on blunt, easy-to- understand information, the site also offers profiles of women who directly confront the challenges of HIV infection and its persistent stigma.

“Frank communication about HIV has never been more crucial to women’s lives,” continued Bridge. “We need to deliver accurate information to the communities that need it most. The Well Project is delighted to make our web- based content available to an audience that is too often overlooked in the larger fight against HIV and AIDS.”