HOUSTON –  (Aug. 17, 2010) – The Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children’s Hospital is recruiting American pediatricians and family doctors to join a new global health service program set to launch in July 2011.

The program will be funded in part by Texas Children’s Hospital and will succeed BIPAI’s groundbreaking Pediatric AIDS Corps, which is now in its final year.

Pediatric AIDS Corps physicians provide HIV/AIDS and primary care to children and families at BIPAI’s Children’s Clinical Centers of Excellence in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Malawi and Tanzania. Pediatric AIDS Corps physicians also work currently in Ethiopia and Mozambique.

Since the program’s inception in 2006, 128 physicians have worked in the Pediatric AIDS Corps for periods of time ranging from one to more than four years.

 The new program, called the Texas Children’s Global Health Service Corps, was established to diversify and scale up BIPAI global health programs for a range of medical conditions heavily impacting child morbidity and mortality worldwide.

Some of these conditions include HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, malnutrition, perinatal conditions, cancer and sickle cell anemia.

“Establishing the Texas Children’s Global Health Service Corps is a testament to the commitment and collaborative spirit of Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine in global child health,” said Michael Mizwa, senior vice president and chief operating officer of BIPAI.

BIPAI is looking for physicians with a special interest in global health.

“We will provide them with a highly meaningful, structured and mentored experience working with children and families in Africa and worldwide,” said Dr. Mark Kline, founder of BIPAI, physician-in-chief at Texas Children’s and chair of pediatrics at BCM. “We expect that a majority of these doctors will pursue careers providing medical care to underserved communities at home or abroad.”

There will be approximately 20 physician positions available each year. To qualify, physicians must be board-certified or board-eligible American pediatricians or family doctors. Each physician must be willing to serve for at least one year.

Applications for the Texas Children’s Global Health Service Corps are due Oct. 31, 2010. For more information on the application process, please contact Dr. Meg Ferris at 832-822-1366 or mferris@bcm.edu. 

About the Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative
The Baylor College of Medicine International Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children’s Hospital was established in 1996, and is the largest university-based program worldwide dedicated to improving the health and lives of HIV-infected children. BIPAI’s Children’s Clinical Centers of Excellence Network, which is staffed collaboratively by U.S. and local health professionals, is transforming pediatric HIV/AIDS care and treatment in the developing world. Approximately 80,000 HIV-infected children and families currently receive care and treatment at Baylor network facilities. For more information, please visit www.bayloraids.org

About Texas Children’s Hospital
Texas Children's Hospital is committed to a community of healthy children by providing the finest pediatric patient care, education and research. Renowned worldwide for its expertise and breakthrough developments in clinical care and research, Texas Children's is nationally ranked in all ten subspecialties in U.S.News & World Report's list of America's Best Children's Hospitals. Texas Children's also operates the nation's largest primary pediatric care network, with more than 40 offices throughout the greater Houston community. Texas Children's has embarked on a $1.5 billion expansion, Vision 2010, which includes the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, a comprehensive obstetrics facility focusing on high-risk births and a community hospital in suburban West Houston. For more information on Texas Children's Hospital, go to www.texaschildrens.org. Get the latest news from Texas Children’s Hospital by visiting the online newsroom and on Twitter at twitter.com/texaschildrens.