Herald Foundation Sensitizes Hiv/Aids Patients

An Akim Oda based Non-Governmental Organisation, Herald Foundation has organized a day sensitization for people living with HiV/AIDS to help them eschew the belittling of themselves and to get to work since belittling themselves can kill them faster than the disease itself.

The sensitization workshop which was held at the conference room of the Birim Central Municipal Health Directorate brought together HIV/AIDS patients from several parts of the Eastern Region as well as some family members of these people and some members of the community.

Speaking at the program, Mr. Justice Kwabena Archer, an anti-HIV/AIDS stigmatization campaigner said, it is about time campaigners against stigmatization of the disease stop targeting the patients and start reaching out to the communities within which these people lives.

He said, if you advise an HIV/AIDS patient to put his or herself together and get to business and yet his/her community people do not accept him, it becomes a wasted effort.

On the other hand, even if the patient himself is not ready to go to public and his community people are rather ready to bring him closer to themselves, it builds their confidence and even makes them live longer than they might have lived. Without mincing words, Mr. Archer said, most of the campaign on HIV/AIDS in the country has been on the socio-economic effect of the disease and not really on the stigmatization by the community on the people living with the disease.

“Saying is not deadly is not enough, what is not making it deadly?” He asked. “Tell the community in which the person lives that, he does not seize to become your son or daughter after contracting HIV/AIDS so let him continue to be part of you and do not give him any preferential treatment. However treatment he was given before contracting the disease should and must continue for them to continue to feel part of the community and the system” he added.

On his part, Mr. Sam Appiah KUbi, the director of Herald Foundation advised the patients to be bold to get into the society and part of the people. According to Mr. Appiah Kubi, the pstients should know that live goes on after HIV/AIDS and not every person who has the disease contracted it through ‘awkward’ means. Therefore, they should continue to respect their human dignity and continue to live their normal life in the society.

Commenting on the program, Mr. Appiah Kubi said, they are anticipating that the workshop will positively affect the lives of their participants.

The program was supported and funded by Sweden based UMEA GHANA UNION and FORUM SYD.