Day 17 Digest (May 23, 2006)
In today’s posting, we have three comments:
- Dr. Arzum Ciloglu, Health Communication Partnership
- Dr Lynda Stranix-Chibanda - Zimbabwe
- Marian Amoa, Health Communcation Partnership
Please share your own thoughts and experiences related to the issues raised here and in previous postings.
To participate in the discussion, you can:
- send your comment to fphivintegration@ibp.wa-research.ch
- log into the forum website at http://my.ibpinitiative.org/Community.aspx?c=d1f835b2-0c72-420a-9ade-88186b49abe7 with the username and password you received.
ONLINE ARCHIVE
Postings are also archived at http://www.fpandhiv.org/videoconference/cpieventpage.php along with all the resources mentioned in previous postings. You do not need to know your username and password to read the postings on the web site. While you are there, please take a look at the web site as well. It was developed to bring together in one place all the relevant resources on integration of family planning and HIV/AIDS prevention and services.
We look forward to more of these rich and interesting discussions. Thanks to everyone for participating and for sharing your questions, concerns, and experiences!
Best regards,
HCP and INFO Teams
Arzum Ciloglu – USA
In the digest from Monday, Anupam Raizada from India raises an important point. Although we have tried very hard through this forum to engage people involved at all levels, we have yet to hear much from FP or HIV counselors on the ground. This may be due to our inability to reach them given that they are busy on a day-to-day basis actually implementing the things that we have been discussing. Or, it may be an access issue. This has been an “online” forum requiring access to not only a computer but the internet as well. Is there a better way for us to reach providers? One idea I had was for those of you who have been participating in this forum to send hard copies of the discussions to the providers you know in the field? Would this be possible? Are there any of you who are already doing this? Any other suggestions for what we can do this year or improved ways of running this forum next year? Thank you in advance for the input!
Dr Lynda Stranix-Chibanda - Zimbabwe
I would like to be involved in the small group discussion regarding the intervention evaluation of FP integration with PMTCT/ART programmes, as we are about to begin integrating services in the busy urban clinics of Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe..
Marian Amoa – USA
Dear Dr. Kim:
The online forum has been very interesting and insightful. I have been particularly impressed by Anne Namwamba-Ntombela. Her piece was very touching. I think that she is successful at what she does because of her personal experience and her skills; she is able to empathize and also provide the necessary counseling. This brings to mind the documentary – HIV Positive Voices. It shows four Baltimore, Maryland (USA) residents living with HIV tell their stories, including how they got infected and how HIV/AIDS impacts their lives. The documentary has been well received and won several awards. I would think that one way to make our programs more effective would be to empower people who have been impacted to serve as spokespeople and to carve out a role for them in our programs, where possible. I think that giving programs a “human face” gives it some amount of credibility and relevance.
Issues regarding stigma have been addressed, but I still think that cultural views should be carefully considered. Being an African, I know what it means for a woman to have/not to have children. Therefore, counseling an HIV positive woman should be weighed against the backdrop of where she is coming from. Certainly, there should be a balance between the cultural norms and social responsibility. I surely don’t have the answers but these are some of the issues to be considered.
Thank you,
Marian Amoa