MARIE F. DENIS-LUQUE

I was born and raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and I have been living in the United States since 1991. I hold two Master’s degrees in Public Health from the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, an MSPH in Epidemiology as well as an MPH in Community & Family Health. My area of specialization is the social and behavioral aspects of sexually transmitted diseases specifically HIV in developing countries like Haiti. I have worked in infectious communicable diseases in pediatrics and adult populations in both developed and developing countries. Since the year 2000, my focus has been on HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, but I am also well-versed on other sexually transmitted diseases (chlamydia, syphilis, gonorrhea and human papilloma virus). My research interests include AIDS orphans, program development, monitoring and evaluation in developing countries, and faith-based HIV education outreach in schools and churches. One of my goals is to advocate for the betterment of HIV-infected orphans’ lives in the developing countries, and to draw the attention of interdisciplinary professionals to assist in developing comprehensive approaches in the care delivered to this vulnerable population.  Many social ills have plagued the country of Haiti and with the addition of HIV stigma the plight of HIV-infected children whose parents have died of AIDS has worsened.  To help with this issue, I developed CHOAIDS.