People to Know: Shannon Hader

Dr. Shannon Hader is the current Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration within the DC Department of Health. Until her appointment by Mayor Fenty, she was on detail from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to the Department of State in the District of Columbia as the Senior Scientific Advisor for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). She focused on starting up the Public Health Evaluation Initiative for the $15 billion worldwide program which will inform evidence-based, cost-effective HIV/AIDS programming around the globe.

To find out more, visit the Dr. Shannon Hader Squidoo Page

HIV/AIDS Administration Oversight Hearing

On Friday February 27th, The DC City Council Health Committee, chaired by David Catania, held on oversight hearing of the Department of Health which included an update on the HIV/AIDS Administration.

Dr. Pierre Vigilance provided opening remarks. He was followed by the head of the HIV/AIDS Administration, Dr. Shannon Hader who provided testimony. Dr. Hader also answered questions about the HIV/AIDS housing waiting list and Changes to the Ryan White Planning Council and HIV/AIDS Community Planning Group.

What was perhaps the most remarkable thing about this hearing was the lack of any major problems or controversies when it comes to HIV/AIDS. A great sign. Overall the presentations were encouraging. Dr. Hader, who has already distinguished herself from her predecessors simply by staying in the job for well over one year now, laid out clear, and focused agenda. It may be a while before we see the results of changes made at the HIV/AIDS Administration, but it seems we are definitely moving in the right direction.

Highlights from the hearing are shown below and available on the Fight HIV in DC YouTube Page.

Opening Remarks: Dr. Vigilance



Opening Remarks: Dr. Hader



Dr. Hader on Changes to the Planning Council and CPG



Dr. Hader on the HIV/AIDS Housing Waiting List



Adam Tenner, Metro Teen AIDS

Dr. Hader to Speak at Stein Democrats Meeting

The Stein Democrats will be having a special meeting on Monday, December 17, 2007 at 7:00 pm at the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Room 120.

The guest speaker for the meeting is Dr. Shannon Hader, Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration. Please join us!

The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club is the voice of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Democrats in the District of Columbia. Stein Democrats recently testified at the State Board of Education on the proposed Health Learning Standards.

DC Fights Back Resource Day: By the Numbers

Thanks to the hard work of everyone involved, yesterday's DC Fights Back Resource Day was an astounding success. Here are some of the (great) numbers that tell the story:

We had 21 organizations that co-sponsored the event, and 14 organizations that had tables with information about HIV/AIDS Services in DC. We had 8 people get an HIV test at the resource day. We got 5 new people registered to vote in the District of Columbia. I don't know exactly how many people were at the event, but 65 people signed-in at the registration desk and 20 folks who are not on the DC Fights Back E-mail List asked to be added.

Our 5 panelists discussed services available in the District of Columbia. And we had so many questions we didn't even get to them all. We are planning to print out the questions, find answers, and post them on our website.

All in all it was an amazing event, and I was thrilled that Dr. Hader had a chance to meet with and hear from so many community members in her first week.

Click here to see pictures of the resource day.

Of course, the work continues. Here are some ways you can stay involved.

• Join us for the Speakout and Neighborhood March on November 3rd – March starts at noon at intersection of Martin Luther King Ave, SE and South Capitol St. – Speak Out at 2pm at the Washington Highlands Library, 115 Atlantic St. SW. For details, grab a flyer here or call 202 645-5880.
• Join DC Fights Back. To sign up for the Yahoo Group, click here.
• Register to Vote while you’re here and pay attention to the City Council, School Board, and other local races. click here to register to vote or click here to check your voter registration status.
  
• Keep informed on HIV in DC. Visit www.fighthivindc.org for daily updates.
• Tell your story about HIV/AIDS in the District of Columbia. Send your pictures, blog posts, or youtube videos to tellyourstory@fighthivindc.org
• Consider Joining the Community Planning Group, Ryan White Planning Council, or another advisory board.

In short, keep at it! Thanks to Cherie Lindsay, George Kerr, The Westminster Presbyterian Church, and everyone who helped make this resource day possible.

Welcome Messages to Dr. Hader

Newly appointed Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration won't actually start work till October, but folks are already posting some great welcome messages right here on our welcome page.

Alex Lawson (pictured bottom left) writes: "I think that the challenges that you will face as the new director of the HIV/AIDS Administration are tough ones, but by working together with the community these challenges can be overcome." read Alex's welcome message.

Ruby Corado (pictured bottom right) writes: "As you lead our nation’s capital in the fight against this disease, I want to beg and plead that you give those infected and affected by this plague, the power to lead right along with you in this battle." read Ruby's welcome message.

Alexis Landa (pictured botom right) writes: "As part of the Network of this City fighting against HIV/AIDS, and a truly untiring defender of the rights of minorities, I as a voice for Andromeda Transcultural Health and its employees, would like to welcome you as our new Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration." read Alexis's message.

Karyn Pomerantz (pictured top left) writes: "We need to include but go way beyond condoms, sex education, and testing as responses to HIV. MWPHA demands that all DC residents have access to truly affordable housing and meaningful jobs to create the stability that creates health." read Karyn's welcome message.

Great work, but we're just getting started. Please take a moment and send your own welcome message to Dr. Hader. It's simple, just send a message to welcome@fighthivindc.org.

Welcome Dr. Shannon Hader

Send your welcome message to Dr. Shannon Hader, the new Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration, at www.fighthivindc.org/welcome.

The Washington Blade reports that Dr. Shannon Hader has been selected to be the new Director of the DC HIV/AIDS Administration. The position has been vacant since January when Mayor Adrian Fenty took office and chose not to keep Dr. Marsha Martin in the position. Since January, Director of the Department of Health Gregg Pane has served as Interim Director, juggling this role with his other responsibilities.

Here's what google tells us about Dr. Hader ...... Dr. Shannon Hader earned an M.D. at Columbia University and trained in internal medicine and pediatrics at Duke University Medical School and in infectious diseases at Emory University Hospitals.

According to this biography of Dr. Hader, In 2001 she took a job as an epidemic intelligence service officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Hader went on to serve as the Director of the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) office in Zimbabwe. Dr. Hader has served as an adjunct clinical faculty member at Emory University School of Medicine. An accomplished researcher, she has worked on numerous HIV/AIDS research studies.(If you want to search for articles she's published search "Hader, SL").

She was licensed to practice medicine in Atlanta Georgia, but more recently was licensed in Dulles, Virginia.

That's all I found for now, I'm sure we'll learn more about Dr. Hader in the weeks and months ahead. Check out the Washington Blade article for more.

Fight HIV in DC has a new mini-site where you can send your own welcome message to Dr. Hader. Check out www.fighthivindc.org/welcome. You can post your own welcome message to Dr. Hader on the site by sending an e-mail to welcome@fighthivindc.org. All welcome messages will be posted live to the site and will be delivered to Dr. Hader.

Send your welcome message to Dr. Shannon Hader, the new Director of the HIV/AIDS Administration, at www.fighthivindc.org/welcome.