Paediatric HIV Service
Table of Contents
The Paediatric HIV Service, Positive Kids and Camp Goodtime
About the HIV Service
The Paediatric HIV Service at Sydney Children's Hospital works with children, families and pregnant women living with HIV. It is the only service of its kind in Australia and provides medical management, psycho-social support, research, consultation and education.
HIV Service Team Members
- A/Prof John Bernard Ziegler (MB BS, FRACP, MD, DipHEd, FAAAAI)
Professor Ziegler is Head the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases and of the HIV Service, and is Associate Professor of Paediatrics, University of NSW. He was cofounder of the Australasian Society for HIV Medicine, its first secretary and has served as President. He chairs the Immunoglobulin Users Advisory Group for NSW Health. He has served as consultant on perinatal transmission (breast feeding) of HIV to WHO in Geneva and on management of paediatric HIV in Malaysia and has been a UNICEF consultant on paediatric HIV to Indonesia.
Publications include more than 120 peer reviewed papers, invited papers and book chapters in clinical immunology, rheumatology, HIV medicine, paediatric pain, 14 reports for government and other bodies.
Major contributions in HIV include the first description of mother-to-infant transmission of HIV during breast feeding and the definition of the risk of HIV via breast feeding during maternal seroconversion. Dr Ziegler was instrumental in the setting up of surveillance mechanisms for perinatal exposure to HIV.
Current research interests include genetics of congenital immune deficiency disorders, and epidemiology and diagnosis of severe food allergy in Australian children. HIV research objectives include studies to define the frequency, character and specificity of anti-HIV immune responses present in infants and children exposed perinatally to HIV and genetic and other factors affecting the risk of perinatal transmission. He has compared the methods used in Holocaust denial with those used in attempts to refute a relationship between HIV and AIDS. He has studied the use of humour in medical teaching.
- A/Prof. Pamela Palasanthiran (MBBS, FRACP, MD)
Pamela is an infectious diseases paediatrician with 20 years of clinical and research experience in paediatric HIV. She really enjoys interacting with the patients who attend our clinics. Pamela has been a staff specialist at Sydney Children's Hospital since 1997 . Prior prior to this , she was a research fellow with A/Professor Ziegler in the late 80's when paediatric HIV started becoming known in Australia. Together with John Ziegler, she has seen the many changing faces of HIV since it's emergence nearly 3 decades ago. She then completed her infectious diseases fellowship at Duke University Medical Centre in North Carolina. Besides HIV, her other research interests include congenital infections like congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV), invasive fungal infections in children and hepatitis C.
- Angela Miller (BSW, MSD)
Hi, my name is Angela and I'm a senior social worker with the Paediatric HIV Service at Sydney Children's Hospital. I've been with the service since 2003. Prior to commencing at the hospital I worked with kids in long-term care, child protection and disability services in Sydney and London. I really love the variety that this role provides and hope to further develop our support based services for kids and families living with HIV over the next few years. I'm also really interested in working with services in other parts of the world as they develop psycho-social services within their HIV programs. - Dr Brendan McMullan (BMed, DTMH, DCH)
Hi! My name is Brendan and I am the Infectious Diseases Fellow at Sydney Children's Hospital. I've been working as a doctor with children for the past 5 years and this year I've joined the Paediatric HIV service here. Apart from looking after young people affected by HIV and other infections, I'm also interested in Refugee Health, Congenital Infections and Microbiology, so I work together with many other people here at Sydney Children's Hospital and get to do some research too! I'll see you in clinic! - Dr Tony Walls (MB ChB, FRACP, MD)
A Consultant in Paediatric Infectious Diseases with an active interest in HIV medicine. He qualified as a General Paediatrician in New Zealand before moving to the UK in 2002 to complete Infectious Diseases training. He trained at the Royal London Hospital, and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children before beginning work at Sydney Children's Hospital in July 2007. His research interests include viral infections in immunocompromised children, and childhood tuberculosis. He continues to be involved with the Children's HIV Association (UK) programme in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa, assisting with the rollout of antiretroviral therapy in children.
Events
The 6th Australian Update on HIV and Hepatitis In Children
This Update on the advances in clinical and psychosocial care for children and families living with HIV and Hepatitis C will be held over two days Thursday 25 February and Friday, 26 February 2010. Full Details...
Camp Goodtime
Each year since 1990, the service has facilitated Camp Goodtime, the national camp for children and families living with HIV.
The aims of Camp Goodtime are to:
- Facilitate communication between and within families living with HIV
- Reduce the isolation experienced by these families
- Provide a recreational and therapeutic environment where children and parents can share experiences with others in similar circumstances
- Provide a venue where information about the medical, social and other aspects of HIV can be shared and where new ways of coping with the virus can be learned
Children are supervised by volunteers and spend their time participating in a range of fun activities, whilst parents participate in a workshop program. The whole camp comes together for important events such as a remembrance ceremony. The quilt project is also in attendance.
Positive Kids Camps
In addition to Camp Goodtime, a camp is held each year for HIV positive primary school aged children and another for HIV positive teens. These camps aim at teaching a new skill, increasing confidence, increasing HIV knowledge, providing support and fostering peer networks.
Volunteers
Volunteers are recruited each year to work with the children at Camp Goodtime. Volunteers attend a training weekend prior to attending the Camp. To find out more about volunteering at Camp Goodtime, contact the social worker on:
- tel: (02) 9382 1851
- email: angela.miller@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au
Make a donation
Camp Goodtime does not receive any government funding, instead we rely solely on fundraising events, sponsorship and donations. To make a donation, please contact the Sydney Children's Hospital Foundation on (02) 9382 1188 to find out more.
Calendar
Resources
Positive Pregnancy Booklet
The Positive Pregnancy Booklet was originally developed and published in 2001 and has been updated in 2008. It has been designed to help couples living with HIV to make informed choices about pregnancy and having babies. It is also envisaged that it is a resource for other health care workers caring for these couples. It provides information from health professionals and a positive woman.
Links
- Sydney Children's Hospital
- Sydney Children's Hospital Foundation
- Australasian Society of HIV Medicine (ASHM)
- AIDS Council of NSW (ACON)
- Multicultural HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C Service (MHAHS)
- Heterosexual HIV/AIDS Service (PosHets)
Contact Details
Telephone
- Tel: 61 2 9382 1851 (Social Worker)
- Tel: 61 2 9382 1654 (Clinical Nurse Consultant)
Postal Address:
The Paediatric HIV Service
Level 3, Sydney Children's Hospital
High Street
Randwick NSW 2031