There were many Persons Living with HIV here who were willing to contribute and share their stories.  Staff, Interns and volunteers were all privileged to have been able to speak with different people and to learn about many things that normally go pass us by.

We will continue to hold such interviews and eventually come out with the document which we will share and use as a tool in our hopes of ever getting to Zero Tolerance to HIV related Stigma.

More to follow as we move along……….

Do you think you can ace the questionnaire?!? True or False

·         HIV/AIDS is an listed as an official epidemic in Ghana by the World Health Organization

·         HIV/AIDS can be passed from an infected mother to her baby

·         Worldwide, tuberculosis is the number one killer of HIV/AIDS patients

·         HIV/AIDS can be transmitted by saliva

·         The annual number of people diagnosed with HIV/AIDS has increased in Ghana during the past few years

·         If infected patients have access to the proper medications, their HIV/AIDS can be cured

·         HIV/AIDS can be transmitted by unprotected sexual intercourse

·         Ghana has a higher prevalence of HIV/AIDS than the United States

·         HIV/AIDs can be transmitted by mosquitoes carrying the blood of an infected person to another person

·         The most common symptoms of HIV/AIDS are:  gradual weight loss, headache and diarrhea lasting longer than a month.

It was really interesting to see the results from International Day:
-100% of participants correctly indicated that HIV is transmitted through unprotected sexual intercourse and that HIV can be passed from an infected, pregnant mother to her baby.

-Fewer than 10% of participants incorrectly thought that HIV is transmitted by saliva, HIV is transmitted by mosquitos, HIV/AIDS is curable, the prevalence of HIV is higher in Ghana than in the United States and the annual number of people diagnosed with HIV has increased in Ghana during the past few years (fortunately, it has decreased!).

-More than 1/3 of participants did not know that HIV/AIDs is considered an official epidemic in Ghana by the World Health Organization, tuberculosis is the leading cause of death among HIV/AIDS patients worldwide, and the most common symptoms of HIV include gradual weight loss, headache and diarrhea lasting longer than one month.

Mama Luu was so excited to begin interviews yesterday as she got her packet of forms and began chatting with participants!  It was fun to talk with her prior as we prepped together and then see her excitement to go put it into action.  I remembered chatting with our community volunteers last week as we were prepping them as well and how eager they were to get started, you could just see the wheels turning in their heads as they mentally identified individuals they knew would benefit from these interviews.

Part of the excitement around these interviews is the fact that this is an opportunity to actually document what is going on versus what everyone knows is going on and only whispers about.  It is a harsh reality here that in many facilities, individuals experience stigma and discrimination on a regular basis due to their HIV status, STI’s, or lifestyle.  We hear stories all the time about ladies who were pregnant and attending a maternity clinic and refused services when the clinic staff discovered that she is HIV positive.  For many women, they don’t even know they are positive until they have the mandatory test during pregnancy…so now they are dealing with that in addition to having to find a new practitioner whom they trust and who is willing to help them deliver their child, despite the mother’s status. We’ve heard of individuals who would go to a clinic, only to have the clinician see them in the waiting room and ask them in front of everyone, “Have you gotten your CD4 count recently?”.   Most recently, I heard of an individual who is gay and went to a health facility where the clinician didn’t want to give him his medication until he promised to stop being gay!

These are certainly not the experiences of everyone and we are aware that there are many practitioners and clinic staff who care a great deal for their patients and do not allow stigma to affect the quality of care they provide.  But it has become abundantly clear that this is not always the case, and those individuals need to have a voice so that we can have hard evidence to impact policy, affect change, support facilities providing compassionate service, and provide awareness and sensitization training wherever needed.

I went to run the idea past Joann (the health assistant that usually oversees HM=HB) who referred to Mama Luu (Nurse) to make sure if doing breast examinations while lactating was advisable. We were informed that it could give false reading. SO we found ourselves staring blankly at each other trying to figure out a solution to our small dilemma. Joann suggested we teach them family planning.

By this time the Mommies had arrived. We had three new faces and Florence our glowing mommy from Yogis  in IHCC. I noticed that Florence’s belly was gone. I naturally greeted her smiling and congratulating her on the birth of her new born. Come to find out the baby died two days after birth of complications. Talk about an uncomfortable situation, I went from happy and congratulatory to empathic and apologetic.

When we started the session one of the first topics Joann touched on was myths or taboos. Florence was told that if she cried she would not be able to have another baby, so she has not cried. Another woman was told she should not have sex with her husband or she will lose the baby.  These were shocking to me, but I know I just can’t say “well that is silly” because culture and beliefs are so important. We respectfully informed them that it is can be okay to cry and to have sex with their husbands during intercourse, in fact both are actually beneficial.

We went on to discuss spacing out their pregnancies; so maybe wait 2 years before they have another child. That topic led to how to say no or suggest different things they can do besides sexual intercourse.  This part got slightly comical because Adjoa and I suggested they consider taking a romantic walk, digital sex, oral sex, going on a dinner date etc and they ladies looked at us as if we had gone mad. They quickly informed us that dinner and walk could happen but it would be very rare. The digital or oral sex they would not even consider asking for it, and had THEY been asked to do so they would feel insulted.  So after Adjoa and I got a lesson about traditional Ghanaian culture in regards to sexual intercourse we figured why not give a condom demonstration. To our surprise they had never put on a condom because it is seen as the man’s duty.  Joaan discussed the use of the female condom. We also touched on the use of Vaseline as a means of lubrication and how it is not advisable because it can cause the condom to break.

I enjoyed this session a lot because since Joana was leading it and speaking Twi the ladies were a lot more vocal and could relate to her on different level but that factor also made me feel defeated because I know the language barrier is big problem if this is the work I wish to do in the future. I also enjoyed that I learned a couple things about some of their culturally beliefs as it relates to sexual intercourse.

We have one more Healthy Mum=Healthy Baby session before I have to leave  :( ! Time goes by so fast!! Till next time!

The event started at 4 sharp! They were very punctual. We met with our contact person Saide and had our seats next to the other presenters. There was drama about a father who just found out that his daughter was HIV positive. He did not want to stand next to her in fear that he would catch the virus. The mother and the community doctor were defending the girl and encouraging the father to come close to the daughter. That was the gist of the play; it was done in Hausa so we got the synopsis of what was going on.

By the time it was WAAFs turn to address the crowd the community leaders had spoken about everything we had planned to talk about. So lucky for us there was a large group of school kids and since talking to school kids is one of our specialties we spoke to them. I spoke in English and Esther translated in Twi. We reinforced that they practice abstinence for as long as possible, if they must have sex use a condom and also that they acknowledge the potential they have to become great leaders in Ghana and the world; they should not risk their potential to this virus.

The event was very successful! Being there to present and hear from everyone was a great experience.

Written by: Nichole A

Please visit our OVC page for more information on the work WAAF(plus) does with children in need.

We has some great conversations regarding the actual interview form itself which led to the modification of some of the questions.  The volunteers have been working with at-risk populations for a while now and their perspectives on wording and topics were invaluable!

Next step is to continue the training of WAAF(plus) staff so that we can begin interviews on our end as well!

We arrived at Ayalolo Junior High School in Akotolante, Jamestown Friday afternoon. After introductions to the school staff we went to work. We have done 2 other in-school educations at senior high schools so far this year, but this one served to be very memorable for me. We all agreed that in order to get our message across and create a safe space for the students to ask questions we should separate the boys and girls. While I do believe that young boys need mentorship and guidance just as much as young girls, being a young woman I have a biased passion for young girls. Junior high school can be a very impressionable time for youth, having someone mentor and education them about….anything really can be very beneficial.

IHCC nurse assistant Esther Tandoh led the lecture with the girls. After the basic info about HIV/AIDS, we had a woman and her daughter living with HIV share her story and address stigmatization of HIV in Ghana to the young ladies then we had a question and answer session. Having someone who has HIV come in and talk to the students was a new

On our way back to WAAF office as we were reflecting about the in-school session, my thoughts were stuck on two girls that were very specific and graphic with their questions during the Q & A. It was as if they were silently yelling for someone to intervene in their life and offer help. That Friday afternoon I was reminded of the importance of opening myself up and being vulnerable for the sake possibly helping another being. We left Ayalolo and my heart felt heavy for not reaching out to those young ladies. Esther, who has been with IHCC for some years and is well versed with in school education, encouraged me to revisit Ayalolo sometime and for future reference when I feel inclined to reach out to one of the girls I should not hesitate. I strongly took her advice.  strategy and I believe very effective!

Often times I really just want to grab young girls, hug them, tell them they are beautiful and worth the wait. Worth having great people in their life that will care for them like the jewels they are. If ever they feel uneasy, abused, and alone never hesitate to voice their emotions, because you never know someone else’s story and how they can give you strength when you lack it. As Esther said “don’t let these little boys play around with you, you are special and precious, and you are to be treasured.”

I really love youth and women empowerment and being at Ayalolo on Friday, was a perfect combination. I hope WAAF is able to partner with SCEF again to reach another schools.

Submitted by Nichole A.