Monica Gandhi, MD, reflects on her decades-long work in HIV care, from providing care early in the epidemic to leading implementation of today’s groundbreaking medical advances. She discusses the science behind HIV (including how 7 people have been cured), the groundbreaking shift from complex pill regimes to long-acting injectable therapies, and how these innovations help patients facing medication challenges. Monica also draws parallels to COVID-19 as she underscores the importance of harm reduction; encourages bipartisan support while talking about policy and funding; addresses social determinants of health that impact HIV prevention and treatment. For her, HIV is not just an infection, but a movement driving healthcare and equity forward.
Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH, is a Professor of Medicine and an Associate Chief in the Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases, and Global Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. She is the director of the UCSF Center for AIDS Research and the Medical Director of the HIV clinic (Ward 86) at SF General Hospital. Dr. Gandhi also serves as the Associate Program Director of the Infectious Diseases Fellowship at UCSF. Her research focuses on HIV treatment and prevention optimization, HIV in women, adherence measurements in HIV and tuberculosis, adherence interventions, and optimizing the use of long-acting antiretroviral therapy. Dr. Gandhi has been in the HIV workforce since 1996 and brings an extremely important level of expertise to the field. Her book, Endemic, illustrates the lessons to be learned and applied to future epidemics from the HIV epidemic.
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