#witkoppen

[marvellousorchid]

💚😻😻 Come and see the amazing range of Tillandsias at our 📍Randburg and 📍Lynnwood branch today💚😽🌱! LOWEST PRICES Guaranteed 🤫🌈🇿🇦 #marvellousorchid #amazinggarden #plantlove #plantpowered #tillandsia #bestprices #local #localgarden #gardennursery #northriding #randburg #lynnwood #bellairspark #sharonlea #olivedale #northgate #noordhang #kilnerpark #douglasdale #fourways #magaliessig #kyasand #witkoppen #ferndale #strydompark #cresta #randburg #illovo #santon (at Marvellous Orchid)

[daroy26-blog]

One Week to Go

It’s hard to believe that I need to start saying my goodbyes and packing the incredible amount of stuff I have here in my tiny room. I am not looking forward to my 26 hour trip to Montreal in a cramped economy class airplane seat, but I am certainly looking forward to getting home and seeing my friends, family, and dog. When looking back on my time here, I will not miss the security walls, the 12-passenger taxis cutting me off at every traffic light, the embarrassment of my Canadian debit card getting declined at the grocery store, or the never-ending search for good wifi. This country definitely has its problems. The headlines in the news seem to always be about the problems, and everyone likes to talk about what’s wrong. Hidden beneath the headlines, however, is unbelievable beauty, kindness, and perseverance. While travelling, I have been in awe by scenery and wildlife I never thought these eyes would see. I have also met so many unbelievable people who have touched my life and whom I will never forget. Some of you may know who you are, and others may not. I have met people who have given me a home away from home, who have gone out of there way to make sure my time here in their country was enjoyable and unforgettable. To these people I will forever be thankful and I will never forget what they have done for me. I truly hope I can one day return the favour. I have also met many people who have touched my life in a way they may not understand. People who may look like, in the stereotypical sense, unsuccessful and unimportant. People who struggle to get by on a daily basis, who lack education, who are diseased and struggling with their health, and who have children they give everything they have to support. Although many people in society look down on them, I look up to them. I don’t know if I could make it through one day living in their shoes let alone a lifetime. I salute these people and I hope that one day I can be half as resilient and perseverant as them. Niyabonga/Dankie/Thank you, South Africa, I hope we meet again soon. 

[daroy26-blog]

The HIV Stigma

Since I have been with A FRESH Start, one of my main accomplishments has been organizing an HIV support group for our mothers. Something as simple as support is regularly taken for granted. In South Africa, over 7 million people are currently living with HIV, 4 million of whom are women above the age of 15. The reality in the African culture is most of these women are married and have children. It is easy to assume, since there are so many people and women living with the disease, that there is no stigma associated with it. South Africans should be accustomed to people having HIV, and they should accept them for who they are right? Unfortunately that is still not the case, and people battle everyday to hide their HIV positive status from friends, family members, and partners. They feel they will be rejected from their social network due to their HIV status. Mothers are often scared of being kicked out of their house, as their husbands will think they brought the virus into their household. Sometimes this is true, and other times the mothers are simply fearing the worst. As a result, they do not take their medication, and they live in constant stress.

There were 180,000 AIDS related South African deaths in 2015, and I am very confident that a large amount of them were due to stigma. This epidemic could be conquered if everyone was willing to accept and understand HIV. With religious adherence to antiretroviral (ARV) treatment, people are able to ‘put the virus to sleep’ and the virus becomes almost impossible to transmit. The ARVs also give a person a normal lifespan and allow people to lead healthy lives. As it is, however, people are too afraid to test for HIV, they are too afraid to accept themselves as HIV patients, and they are too afraid of others not accepting them for who they are. The epidemic continues to impact people’s lives as well as their loved ones’. 

The goal of the HIV support group is to allow mothers to conquer the HIV stigma, to educate them about the realities of HIV, and to bring mothers together whom are living in similar situations. It has been great to see the mothers profiting and enjoying the support. I asked a mother today how she’s enjoying the group, and she said, “I really enjoy it, I feel safe with these women, like I can share anything, it has relieved my stress”. Thanks in large to the support group, another mother recently told her mother about her HIV status, and to her surprise, her mother accepted the news very well. 

On a personal level, it is difficult to understand what these mothers are going through. I have never been faced with such stigma in my life and I cannot begin to understand what they feel on a daily basis. One thing is for sure, however, bringing them together gives them hope. It helps them, their family, their community, and South Africa in general. Although the group is very small in comparison to the 7 million infected people, we need to impact people one at a time. Educating and supporting one person also impacts others, and so on and so forth. Together we can make a difference with the tools and knowledge we have, and slowly put this epidemic to rest.

[daroy26-blog]

Today, December 1, marks World AIDS Day, and what better place to spend it than in a South African clinic helping the area at the epicentre of the epidemic. Witkoppen Health and Welfare Centre held a ceremony commemorating those who are affected by HIV as well as those who have fought and died due to the deadly virus. One of the speakers at the ceremony mentioned how she and one other doctor were the first at Witkoppen to treat HIV, holding HIV clinics on Tuesdays and Thursdays about 30 years ago. At this time, there was no treatment for HIV. As she mentioned, they would treat complications such as tuberculosis and pneumonia, but after a short amount of time, all patients would die. She said it was the most difficult time of her career. 

Today, patients and doctors are far more fortunate. Doctors are able to prescribe treatment that, if taken on a regular basis, will allow patients to live normal lives. Adhering properly to the medication almost completely takes away the possibility of transmitting the virus to partners and children. It was also announced yesterday that trials will begin in 20 months on 5,400 HIV negative volunteers for an HIV vaccine. This may be a huge step towards preventing new HIV cases, which are said to happen at a frequency of 1,000 times per day here in South Africa. 

Furthermore, a new initiative by UNAIDS for South Africa has been put in place called 90-90-90 by 2020. This means that the goal by 2020 is: 90% of people should know their HIV status, 90% of those whom are positive should be on treatment, and 90% of those on treatment should be virally suppressed. Currently, 66% of South Africans know their status, of those who do know they are positive, 55% are on treatment, and 87% are virally suppressed. Therefore, their is still a huge issue and 90-90-90 will be difficult to achieve.

For people living in the Western world, it is difficult to understand why people wouldn't get tested or get treatment once diagnosed. It improves your everyday life, prolongs your lifespan, protects you from other diseases, and protects those around you. The issue is, African culture is completely different, and so are the living environments. Many people have no money, are not educated about the facts or are afraid of the stigma that comes along with HIV. For example, a woman will test positive for HIV but will not disclose to her partner. The reason for this is the partner will blame her for bringing the HIV into the household, and may beat her or throw her out onto the street. Of course, the truth is that many times the men are bringing HIV into relationships, putting young girls in particular danger. Nevertheless, the woman will not take her medicine because she does not want her partner seeing the pills and figuring out she is HIV positive. This not only puts both of them in danger, but it also puts their children in danger, especially if the mother is breastfeeding. 

Luckily, there are programs like A FRESH Start which educate, test, support, and protect babies from this outcome. Unfortunately, however, there are times when it is out of our control. Witkoppen currently treats about 350 children with HIV, some with mothers in care and others without. These innocent children have been infected before really having been given a chance in life. It breaks my heart to see these kids at such a young age having the health complications they must endure due to the infection. To make things worse, many of their parents or guardians cannot afford to have them come to the clinic anymore due to a fee increase at the clinic. Up to date, the children have been able to get care even if their caregivers were unable to pay. Beginning in January, however, everyone will have to pay to be treated or else sent away. This means that children would have to attend a government clinic where free care is available. The issue is that these clinics do not have adequate resources to treat paediatric HIV patients and they would be in great danger. It really does not seem fair to me. Healthcare is a human right, especially for an HIV infected child. 

As a result, I am working with Lauren Cohen (founder of the Gift of Hope and A FRESH Start), Dr. Holly France (Paediatric HIV specialist), and other staff members to accommodate the mothers and children who cannot afford to come to the clinic anymore. Although it is hard to imagine for most of us, believe me when I say these people literally live on the bare minimum. Many rely on monthly income that couldn’t buy me 3 meals at McDonald’s, let alone support a family. 

Please visit this link (http://www.giftofhopeusa.org/goh-oursuccessstories-lerato-and-nyiko.shtml) and read about Lerato and Nyiko (pictured above), two patients whom I see frequently at the clinic. This will give you an understanding of what these patients are going through, and how you can help them. If you have any questions please let me know, and if you know anyone who is looking to make a difference in someone’s life, please share this with them. 

[daroy26-blog]

As some of you may know, August is women’s month, and from August 1-7 is World Breastfeeding Week. I assisted A FRESH Start Health Councillor Dikeledi (seen on left) in leading Exclusive Breastfeeding presentations to future mothers of the Antenatal Clinic at Witkoppen Health and Welfare Centre.  Just to clarify a couple of terms, antenatal means before birth (during pregnancy) and Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF) is the notion that only breast milk will be given to the baby from birth until 6 months. If the mothers have the choice, it is very beneficial for them to breastfeed as supposed to using formula through a bottle. It drastically decreases the baby’s risk of disease, increases the baby’s overall health, and decreases their financial burden since, well, breast milk is free! When I say “given the choice”, there is a common misconception that HIV+ mothers cannot breastfeed. In fact, as long as their viral loads are suppressed through good health and antiretroviral drugs (ARV), they are free and safe to breastfeed without transmitting the virus. The issue is, however, the women either don’t understand this, don’t know their viral loads as they give birth, or are being told by someone else (partner, parents, community members) that it isn’t safe to breastfeed. Therefore it is crucial that we transmit the information to them to help them understand as well as have them visit clinicians so they can be aware of their viral loads before they give birth. This is essential since once they begin formula feeding, they can no longer return to breastfeeding. If they start the bottle feeding before their first postnatal visit to the program, it is already too late! So far it has been a great experience working with the unbelievable staff of A FRESH Start and the perseverant patients that we see. As you can see by the picture, despite their hardships, they always find a way to smile.