**Client Highlight** - Mothers 2 Mothers
The Mothers2Mothers vision and mission:
Our Vision is a world in which babies are not infected with HIV and where mothers with HIV/AIDS live long and healthy lives, caring for their families and having hope for the future.
Our Mission is to create an effective, sustainable model of care that provides education and support for pregnant women and new mothers living with HIV/AIDS. Our goals are to:
To prevent babies from contracting HIV through mother-to-child transmission
To keep mothers and babies living with HIV alive and healthy by increasing their ability to access health-sustaining medical care
To empower mothers living with HIV/AIDS, enabling them to fight stigma in their communities and to live positive and productive lives
The Mothers2Mothers History:
Founded by Dr. Mitchell Besser in 2001, mothers2mothers has developed from a single support group in Cape Town to a multinational NGO with over 500 sites in seven countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
Besser, a gynecologist who was working with at-risk pregnant women in both California and South Africa, served as a consultant for the clinical roll-out of Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT). While working at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, he realised that even when medical treatment was available to these women, it was often less than effective because of social, emotional and psychological barriers to success. To help break through those barriers, Besser enlisted other new mothers living openly with HIV/AIDS who, as Mentor Mothers, began to connect with and educate their pregnant peers. The result of these efforts is m2m today.
In the years since Besser's first efforts, the growth of the program has been nothing short of extraordinary. The m2m model has become something of a touchstone for PMTCT services, frequently cited as a leading model by international health care heads. In addition, it has captured the attention of major funding partners including USAID/PEPFAR and NPI, Atlantic Philanthropies, Clinton Foundation, UNICEF, Johnson & Johnson, Bickerstaff Family Foundation, Merck to well-known figures such as fashion designer and AMFAR chair Kenneth Cole, Sir Elton John and senior elected officials from across the political spectrum.
