Strength and Hope – The Grandmothers of Africa

Dr. Lorna Adams, Give a Day supporter writes…There is no doubt.  The grannies of sub-Saharan Africa are holding the continent up on their shoulders.  I have met so many grannies, and they are the glue that is keeping what is left of the families of this continent together.  They are making new families.  They incorporate the children of their next door neighbour into their new family group, and the children of their deceased sister’s friend’s daughter, and the children of their grandchildren’s teacher, into their family unit.  And then they look in on the children in the home down the street, where there is a 13 year old, raising her brothers and sisters.  They are utterly exhausted, at times, with the demands that they have accepted for themselves.  But they continue, because, who else will do it?  They know there are too many deaths; there is a coffin maker in every town, even if there are not many other businesses.  There is always need of a coffin during this pandemic that is HIV and AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.  And the grannies continue on, caring, loving, doing as best as they can, in a situation that does, at times feel overwhelming.

 

But, there is HOPE.  A recent report, prepared by the WHO with UNICEF and UNAIDS, states that there has been significant progress in care of people living with HIV since the beginning of this decade. This report states that 42% of people in the developing world who are infected, and should be on ARV medication are now on medication.  Just a few years ago, there was still debate among AIDS experts about the safety of offering a difficult treatment program to people in areas of the world most affected.  Dignitas International has proven that it is safe, feasible, affordable and completely doable.  As Jane Philpott has said, “AIDS is outrageous….and solvable”.  I’m not sure I entirely agreed with Jane before I went to work in Africa with Dignitas International, but I sure do now.

Published by: GiveADay on December 4th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, HIV/AIDS in Africa, Recipient News, World AIDS Day 2009
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Reflections on the AIDS Epidemic Update for 2009 – Dr. Tim O’Shea

Dr. Tim O’Shea, Give a Day supporter writes…UNAIDS recently released their AIDS Epidemic Update for 2009.  In previous blogs I have emphasized how important it is to keep in mind the personal stories behind the staggering statistics associated with this virus.  However, reflecting on the information contained in the update, it becomes clear that the numbers do indeed speak for themselves.  The overall numbers are jarring; in 2008 there were 33 million people living with HIV,  an astounding 2.7 million new infections and 2 million deaths.  Looking deeper at the statistics, however, reveals what for me is one of the most outrageous aspects of the HIV pandemic . The burden of this disease is being borne increasingly by the women and children of sub-Saharan Africa.  Over 14 million children have been orphaned since the start of the epidemic, and astoundingly 91% of the 430,000 children born with HIV in 2008 were born in sub-Saharan Africa.  The fact that transmission of the HIV virus from mother to child continues to occur at such rates at a time when we know how to reliably manage this risk should be a source of shame for the entire international community. 

                Reading and reflecting on statistics such as these can leave one alternating between feelings of deep outrage and depression, guilt and hopelessness.  The scope of the pandemic seems so overwhelming, and the problems so complex that it is difficult to know how to make a difference.  That is why it is so essential to learn about the work that organizations such as Dignitas International and the Stephen Lewis Foundation are carrying out.  Visit their websites, attend a talk, volunteer, Give a Day.  Getting involved with these groups will begin to replace your sense of rage with a sense of purpose, and your feelings of despair with hope.

Published by: GiveADay on November 30th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, HIV/AIDS in Africa, Media, Recipient News, Workplace Campaigns, World AIDS Day 2009
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News from Malawi- HIV/AIDS is “Coming Out”

Dr. Lorna Adams, Give a Day supporter writes…It is becoming clear to me, as I spend more time in Malawi working in the HIV/AIDS Clinic run by Dignitas International, that HIV and AIDS are  coming ‘out’ in Malawi.  There are posters everywhere, encouraging people to “know your status”.  Signs in stores and offices ask people to reduce transmission of the virus by using condoms, and there are education programs in schools about how the virus is transmitted.   Posters encourage people to be tested, and there is a significant attempt to reduce the ‘stigma’ of being diagnosed HIV positive. 

In the nursing school that is associated with the Zomba Central Hospital and the Tisungane Clinic, I walked by a sign showing two young people, gazing into each other’s eyes, with the caption  “AIDS/HIV….if you don’t have it, don’t get it.  If you have it, don’t pass it on”.  It was quite clear and to the point. 

I worked with Alice Kadzanja in Malawi, a nurse who was portrayed in Stephanie Nolen’s remarkable book, “28  Stories of AIDS in africa”.  Alice is HIV positive, and supports people in their decision to consider being tested, using herself as an example of someone who was sick, and is now well because of treatment.  Alice played volleyball on the Clinic Sports Day, proudly wearing her T shirt which declared “ARV’s are essential drugs for people with AIDS”. 

I met another woman on a bus, who was happy to have me photograph her with her shirt that proclaimed for all to see that she was on therapy.  It is actions like this that reduce the stigma of being diagnosed HIV positive, and encourage people to discuss their risk of infection.  The Dignitas Program has allowed many people in the Zomba area of Malawi to understand that AIDS is a treatable disease.  In a continent where HIV infection knows no age, socioeconomic, educational, gender, political or cultural bias, this is a remarkable and very important step forward in the fight against this pandemic.

Published by: GiveADay on November 26th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, HIV/AIDS in Africa, Media, Recipient News, World AIDS Day 2009
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Dignitas Co-Founder James Fraser Speaks at Torys LLP

Jackie Taitz, member of the Torys LLP Give a Day campaign team writes…On Tuesday November 10th James Fraser spoke before a large crowd at Torys, a law firm in downtown Toronto, as part of their annual Give A Day to World AIDS campaign. The audience was moved by Mr. Fraser’s graphic description of the state of health care and the response to HIV and AIDS at the time of his first visit to the Zomba hospital. The transformation that Dignitas, working together with Malawian health officials, has fostered in a few short years left those in attendance truly in awe of Dignitas’ impressive achievements.

Many at Torys walked away from Mr. Fraser’s presentation inspired by the work that Dignitas is doing and motivated to financially support its efforts. The event was a huge success and Torys greatly appreciates Mr. Fraser taking the time to share his remarkable experiences with us.

Published by: GiveADay on November 24th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, Workplace Campaigns, World AIDS Day 2009
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Harambee Blues – for World AIDS Day and CD Launch of Harambee!

On Tuesday, December 1st, World AIDS Day, come to “Harambee Blues” – a night of music for World AIDS Day , and the CD launch of “Harambee!” featuring Madagascar Slim, Digging Roots, Mike Stevens, Blue Room with hosts for the evening Uitsile Ndlovu and Simba Nyawiri (of Soul Influence). The event takes place at the Silver Dollar Room in Toronto (486 Spadina Ave) – doors open at 6:00pm (dinner menu available), and the show begins at 7:30pm. Admission is $10.00   http://www.silverdollarroom.com/

Published by: GiveADay on November 23rd, 2009 | Filed under GAD Events, Give a Day 2009, Give a Day Harambees, Workplace Campaigns, World AIDS Day 2009
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Update from Malawi – Dr. Lorna Adams – Elizabeth and Innocencia

Dr. Lorna Adams, Give a Day supporter writes…My very special watch, given to me as a birthday present six years ago by my children, stopped working during my first week of volunteering in the Tisungane HIV/AIDS clinic in Malawi.  That my watch was broken upset me deeply, made me miss home, and got me thinking about birthdays. With a start, I realized that when I received that watch, 6 years ago, I had already outlived the projected lifespan for most Malawians.  With a shudder, I understood that my watch was older than many children could expect to live if they were born with HIV and did not receive antiretroviral treatment (ART).  That quickly put an end to my concern about a watch, and put my work in a very different perspective.

 

This week, I saw the devastation caused by untreated HIV infection, and learned the stages of progression to full AIDS.  I learned how to classify a patient, depending upon their symptoms and their CD4 count, into a ‘WHO’ (World Health Organization) stage of illness, from 1 to 4, that allowed decisions to be made about appropriate treatment.  I was able to see that, in the Tisungane Clinic, care and treatment can be offered to all who need it no matter how many people were in the line up.  I started my first patient on antiretroviral treatment, with guidance from the Malawian nurses and Clinical Officers who so efficiently and helpfully taught me the ropes. 

I was able to sort through the lifeline of heathcare here, the Health Passbook, a health record that every Malawian carries to all medical visits. 

I could see their CD4 counts and read about previous opportunistic infections that are a sign of HIV, such as shingles or fungal infections of the skin, and determine if a patient should be started at that point on ART (Antiretroviral Therapy).  And so we started Elizabeth, a 30 year old mother of 9 year old Innocencia, on medication.  They had walked miles to the clinic, and Elizabeth was so thin that I think the child with her was more than half her weight.  She received counseling about her medications and possible side effects from the counseling team, supplemental nutritional aids from the nutrition team, and finally, was taught again how to take her medicine, every morning and every evening, m’mawa and madzulo, 6 am and 6 pm, for the rest of her life.  There is no doubt in my mind that she will, and because of Dignitas, she will soon be well enough to care again for the child that was caring for her.

Published by: GiveADay on November 16th, 2009 | Filed under HIV/AIDS in Africa, Recipient News, Workplace Campaigns
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Cassels, Brock and Blackwell, LLP launch their Give a Day 2009 Campaign

Laura Shiner, Articling Student at Cassels, Brock and Blackwell, LLP writes…

The Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP Give a Day team kicked off our 2009 campaign on November 10 by hosting a lunch lecture with James Fraser, the co-founder of Dignitas International.  We had a great turnout as over one hundred partners, associates and staff came out to show their support and learn about one of the recipient organizations that Give a Day supports.

Fraser spoke about the work Dignitas is doing in Malawi and the changes that have occurred in the Zomba District since 2004.  When he first arrived in Malawi, Fraser came face to face with a community without hope.  Nurses in health care centers sat behind their desks drinking tea because they were completely overwhelmed by the number of patients in their care.  Frightened mothers refused to care for their infants because they feared getting sick from their IVs. Thousands of Malawians sat on their doorsteps waiting to die.

Now, only a few years since Dignitas’ work began, there have been extraordinary changes.  60,000 pregnant women have accessed Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission services to help prevent transmission of HIV to their newborns. More than 10,500 children and adults have been started on life-extending anti-retroviral therapy.Along with this, the overall mood of the community is more optimistic, and health care workers are described by Fraser as having “a spring in their step.” The people in the Zomba District are leading productive lives once again.

Dignitas is now preparing to begin “Phase 2” of its activities in Malawi, which means expanding throughout the country and repeating the successes from Zomba District in other communities.

The CBB Give a Day team hopes that we can exceed our campaign goals for 2009 in order to support Dignitas International and the Stephen Lewis Foundation, in such worthwhile ventures.

Published by: GiveADay on November 11th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, HIV/AIDS in Africa, Media, Workplace Campaigns
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News from Malawi – Dr. Lorna Adams

Dr. Lorna Adams, Give a Day supporter writes… I recently spent 3 months working in Malawi and Zimbabwe, in HIV/AIDS Clinics in both countries.  I was able to see, close up and personal, what your support of the Give a Day campaign is able to accomplish on the ground and in action.  I would like to tell you a little about my work in Malawi, with Dignitas International, and some personal stories from the field.  I have seen what a Difference a DAY can make, and it is incredible.

My first day at the Dignitas Tisungane (‘Let’s Work Together’ or ‘Hope’ in Chichewa, the local language) HIV/AIDS Clinic was quite overwhelming.  Dignitas, as a matter of principle, employs many local workers. From the Clinical Officers, who function almost as physicians, to the nurses, the lab technicians, the volunteers, the expert patients, the drivers, the cleaners, the lunch ladies, the IT staff and all the other support staff, I was exhausted just trying to remember the incredible number of names of the people I was introduced to. 

And then, the hundreds and hundreds of patients, waiting in lines for hours for either their first assessment, to find out if they are HIV positive or not, or their counseling session prior to starting antiretroviral therapy. Others were coming for their follow up appointment, to see if they are having any side effects or problems with their medicine, and then, receive their life saving medication for another 2 weeks, or month or longer.  It certainly took me a couple of weeks just to get oriented and find my way around the clinic since it is a very large area in order to service thousands of patients.

Next week, more stories from the Dignitas International HIV/AIDS Clinic in Zomba, Malawi.

Published by: GiveADay on November 6th, 2009 | Filed under Give a Day 2009, HIV/AIDS in Africa, Media, Recipient News
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Online HARAMBEE: Sign our virtual “Yes We Will” Board….

Published by: GiveADay on December 1st, 2008 | Filed under Dec 1/08- Online Harambee
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