Babak Fakhamzadeh
The title of the book refers to a comment, near the end, where Pisani states that she feels that, in the AIDS industry, "we are all whores". The book's an interesting introduction to 'the business of AIDS', which Pisani on occasions refers to as 'AIDS mafia', though she's also deploying a certain level of hypocrisy. Particularly in relation to her first years at UNAIDS, Pisani tries to show the enthusiasm as well as the amateurishness of those working for the organization, meanwhile seemingly trying to cover up that, though she's now talking about it, she was in no way more professional than everyone else. In fact, the general story of her rise and rise could be construed as an example of opportunism in the face of millions of dollars of funding.
Most of the book is an interesting series of anecdotes, where Pisani occasionally wags the finger at her colleagues and herself and, with it being accessibly written, reads away easily. This makes the book both entertaining and readable but also not much more than something like "my years with the AIDS mafia", the only real value being the very last chapter of the book, where the author recounts her list of solutions for stopping the spread of HIV:
+ Persuade uninfected people to use condoms with partners who are likely to be infected. In East and Southern Africa and most gay communities, that's every new sex partner, in most other places, that would focus on sex workers. Promote lubricants for anal sex. + Provide methadone and clean needles to reduce the risk of injecting drugs. + Reduce the viral load in infected individuals. Keep a mother's viral load down around childbirth. + Circumcise men. Screen for and treat sexually transmitted diseases in sex workers, their clients and their partners.
The title of the book refers to a comment, near the end, where Pisani states that she feels that, in the AIDS industry, "we are all whores". The book's an interesting introduction to 'the business of AIDS', which Pisani on occasions refers to as 'AIDS mafia', though she's also deploying a certain level of hypocrisy. Particularly in relation to her first years at UNAIDS, Pisani tries to show the enthusiasm as well as the amateurishness of those working for the organization, meanwhile seemingly trying to cover up that, though she's now talking about it, she was in no way more professional than everyone else. In fact, the general story of her rise and rise could be construed as an example of opportunism in the face of millions of dollars of funding.
Most of the book is an interesting series of anecdotes, where Pisani occasionally wags the finger at her colleagues and herself and, with it being accessibly written, reads away easily. This makes the book both entertaining and readable but also not much more than something like "my years with the AIDS mafia", the only real value being the very last chapter of the book, where the author recounts her list of solutions for stopping the spread of HIV:
+ Persuade uninfected people to use condoms with partners who are likely to be infected. In East and Southern Africa and most gay communities, that's every new sex partner, in most other places, that would focus on sex workers. Promote lubricants for anal sex. + Provide methadone and clean needles to reduce the risk of injecting drugs. + Reduce the viral load in infected individuals. Keep a mother's viral load down around childbirth. + Circumcise men. Screen for and treat sexually transmitted diseases in sex workers, their clients and their partners.