AEGiS-IAPAC: Pale Rider

International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care, January 2000 Journal
José M. Zuniga

There are few individuals I consider true heros. Gordon Nary, who at age 65 retired as executive director of the International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care (IAPAC) in January 2000, is among them. During his tenure at IAPAC, an association he founded in 1995, he combined vision with brilliance allied with courage, personal charm, and unaffected modesty. He is neither a physician, sociologist, economist, nor ethicist, yet through his eloquent monthly column in the Journal of the International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care (Journal), he became an arbiter of clinical, social, economic, and ethical issues often ignored in our fast-paced world of scientific and technological advances.

I first met Gordon in 1997 on one of his visits to Washington, DC, where he sought collaborations with like-minded advocacy organizations. Yet, I feel I knew him well before our meeting at AIDS Action Council/Foundation, where I served as director of communications. I had grown to admire Gordon for his willingness to offer his acute insight into global socio-political affairs to a soundbite-obsessed community. I respected him for his lack of trepidation when it came to addressing contentious issues. For example, on one occasion, Gordon, who was an early critic of unscrupulous viatical firms, labeled the practice as "trading in pork-belly futures." This at a time when this method of borrowing against life insurance policies was widely supported by the AIDS advocacy community.

During our brief discussion then, and during a subsequent meeting in Chicago, he offered me the opportunity to work with him to expand the association's mission to develop and implement global strategies to better the quality of life of all people at risk for and living with HIV/AIDS. He closed his offer with IAPAC's credo, a Dag Hammarksjöld quote that embodies the commitment of IAPAC's staff and membership: "To let oneself be bound by a duty from the moment you see it approaching is part of the integrity that alone justifies responsibility."

As the mantle of leadership shifts from Gordon to me, it is fitting to acknowledge the contributions he has made to our association and, subsequently, to a universe of physicians, other healthcare professionals and, patients living with HIV and other coinfectious diseases. As editor of IAPAC's award-winning Journal, as well as the 1999 Journal supplement series, he made the dignity and value of life the editorial subtext of publications that reach physicians, other caregivers, government officials, nongovernment organization leaders, and patients in 43 countries. Why? He once told delegates to an IAPAC healthcare resource allocation conference that, "the importance of each human life and our mutual responsibilities to take all reasonable measures to nourish and sustain such life is why we work so diligently to educate care providers on cutting-edge clinical management ... so that those who receive [our information] and, by fortune of geography, have access to these flawed but still so precious drugs, know at least how to avoid diminishing their potential value."

As expected by those who know him, Gordon has no plans to slow down at a time in life when many choose to retire into a life of leisure. Independent of IAPAC, he intends to pursue initiatives exploring the potential synergy between the pharmaceutical industry and communities of faith, and will continue his efforts to advance innovative model programs for HIV prevention and treatment directed toward the homeless, migrant workers, the incarcerated, transgendered individuals, and pregnant women in developing countries. And, in his spare time, he is organizing an Internet communications think tank to explore the future of the World Wide Web in medical communications and education.

As Gordon's interests continue to focus on the interrelationship between poverty and disease, I am certain that our paths will continue to cross as we assume our individual and collective responsibilities to help the unrelenting thousands of men, women, and children who rely on individuals and the organizations we represent for help and, as important, for hope. As IAPAC's newly appointed executive director, I trust that the novel directions on which Gordon is embarking will allow him to advance a passion we each share for protecting the value and dignity of human life.

On a personal note, the deepest impression I have of my colleague is of a speech he delivered two years ago at an awards ceremony honoring IAPAC member Mark Kline, MD, and Guatemalan artist and civil-rights activist Daniel Hernández:

"We live in a time when heroes are commonplace, but often unrecognized for their quiet and unassuming commitment to the integrity of their professions. I salute you for sharing with us a belief in our mutual obligations to the millions of men, women, and children throughout the world who are dehumanized by circumstance and disease, and for sharing a mutual resolve to continue to work together to better meet these obligations."

José M. Zuniga is executive director of the International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care.

ÆGIS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Roxane Laboratories, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeard in 2000. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.