James Orbinski and his book: An Imperfect Offering

As soon as I got home from the Canadian Conference on HIV/AIDS Research (CAHR) last month in Toronto, I headed for the nearest bookstore to get my hands on James Orbinski’s book An Imperfect Offering – Humanitarian Action in the Twenty-First Century.  I was so determined to start reading immediately that I sent the entire staff running around the store hunting for the single missing copy the computer said they had in stock.  It took about 45 minutes, with my three year old becoming more and more restless, but I’m happy (as were they) to report that they found it!

It is an incredible account of Dr. Orbinski’s work as a Canadian humanitarian doctor and of events at the end of the 20th century in Somalia, Rwanda, Zaire and Sudan.  He focuses especially on the genocide in Rwanda, which he witnessed first hand.  It deals with horrors that are hard for those born and raised in Canada to imagine, but I think it is an essential read for anyone interested in humanitarianism.  Most recently, Dr. Orbinski has focused his attention and efforts on access to medicines and supporting community-based care programs for people living with HIV/AIDS in resource limited countries.

There are so many profoundly moving stories.  One that Dr. Orbinski shared in his speech at CAHR, that is also in his book, is about a twenty-year-old man dying of AIDS in South Africa.  “Why do you come here with only kindness when what I need is medicine?” the young man asked.  “Your kindness is good, but it will not help this AIDS.  they have such medicine in your countries, why not here in South Africa for people like me?”  James Orbinski is passionately concerned about the inequalities of access to medicines around the world – not just for HIV, but also for tropical diseases like malaria and sleeping sickness, for which there is no western “paying” market and therefore very little investment in research.

While Orbinski was president of Médicins Sans Frontieres (MSF), the organization won the Nobel Peace Prize (in 1999).  They decided to dedicate the prize money to addressing this disparity.  In 2003, the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) was founded – a truly independent and non-profit drug research & development (R&D) organization.  Think: non-profit pharmaceutical company … what!?  Is that possible!?  Check it out!  Dr. Orbinski is also one of the founders of Dignitas International – an organization “dedicated to providing a quality of life with dignity for children, youth and families affected by HIV/AIDS in the developing world”.  In particular, Dignitas supports and trains communities to develop and administer their own comprehensive prevention, treatment, care and support programs.

Dr. Orbinski is a truly inspiring man – somebody who has consistently lived a life dedicated to the well-being of others and to human dignity.  We were all moved to tears (repeatedly) by his speech at CAHR and walked away that night with lots of new food for thought.  This is definitely somebody worth being aware of, and a book worth reading.

-Miriam

This was posted on Friday, May 27th, 2011 at 10:00 am and is filed under Daily Moments, Education & Resources, HIV Prevention, HIV Treatment, News . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.

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