AN OVERVIEW OF HIV PREVENTION IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN-EUROPE

HIV and AIDS present a major challenge to the countries of central and eastern Europe. The manner in which this is being addressed differs f rom country to country, depending upon historical traditions and preva iling public health practices, social values and political priorities. This paper provides an overview of HIV prevention policies in six cen tral and east European counties: Russia, Romania, Hungary, the Czech R epublic, Poland and Lithuania. By homing in on particular aspects of t hese policies, the paper aims to highlight some of the more interestin g contrasts that exist within this region. The paper concludes that, w hile significant comparisons can be made between the countries, tight parallels cannot.