Physical Health Uganda Project #30684

Stop the Cycle of HIV: Support Women and Children!

by Alive Medical Services

Project Report | Nov 1, 2018
The End of a Marriage & the Rise of a Change Maker

By Dr. Pasquine Ogunsanya | Executive Director

Sarah

“My life was perfect,” Sarah* reflects. “I grew up with my parents in a wealthy neighbourhood and lacked for nothing. I went to the finest schools and even attend college abroad.”

When Sarah returned home with a degree in statistics, she felt like everything was falling into place. “I met a man who swept me off my feet. He did everything right and I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him,” she recounted. Soon after the two were married and blessed with three children.

But slowly, things started going wrong. Her children were constantly sick and frequently in the hospital. They were treated for all sorts of infections but never seemed to get back on their feet completely. Her husband had also been in and out of the hospital. He had special doctors that looked after him that Sarah new nothing about.

“One day as I cleaned the bedroom, I found medicine in his drawer and became curious because we kept all our medicines in the bathroom cabinet. When I read the label I didn’t understand it, so I put it back and went about my day.”

“When I got to work that day, curiosity got the best of me. I went researched the drugs in the cabinet and discovered it was medication for people infected with HIV. My heart was pounding so fast. I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t fathom the fact that my husband was HIV positive and never told me.”

“I called him immediately to ask if he was HIV positive. He said he wasn’t. He explained it away by saying the medication was given to him by his doctors as a trial drug for his medical condition.”

Unconvinced, Sarah went to her husband’s doctor and though he wasn’t at liberty to share his client’s information with her, she asked him to have a conversation with her husband. “It was then that I began to ask myself the tough questions – what if he is positive? My children, my health, what would become of us and our marriage?” She thought.

When she took her children to get tested, the results returned her greatest fears confirmed. She and all her little ones were infected. “I broke down in tears, I wanted to die. I even begged the doctor to check again and be sure.”

“With little strength, I called my parents and asked them to pick me up from the hospital. When we reached home, while my parents packed the children’s bags, I went to speak to my husband. He still denied to my face until I showed him our results, then he started to cry and said he did everything right to make sure the children and I never contracted the disease. I asked him if he knew he was positive before we got married, to which he said ‘yes,’” Sarah recalls with tears in her eyes.

After 13 years of marriage, Sarah left her husband and moved to her parents’ home with her children. It was from there that she was introduced to Alive Medical Services (AMS). “My children and I were received with so much care, they looked at us not as victims but as a family. My children have an amazing time when we come to receive our medication and to check our viral load, they never want to leave,” Sarah says.

“Over time I have learnt to live with this new reality and am now back on my feet. I am grateful to AMS for the love and care they have shown to me and my children. If it wasn’t for AMS, I know not what would have become of us.”

Sarah is now an advocate for women who are HIV positive and encourages others to get tested – even if they’re married.

Thank you for keeping Alive Medical Services and our clients in your hearts.

*Name and images in this story have been changed to protect the client’s identity.

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Aug 3, 2018
"Do Not Let Stigma Wear You Down," Evelyn's Story

By Dr. Pasquine Ogunsanya | Executive Director

Evelyn

“If only my mother had taken her medication and followed the doctors’ advice diligently, I would have been born HIV free.” Evelyn, who is now 15 years old and in primary six, says as we ventured into her life story that she was open to share.

“I was born with HIV, but my mother didn’t disclose my status to me until I was 10 years old. I thought she was joking as I was too young to fathom what she had told me. But not long after she fell very ill and was taken to Mulago Hospital where the counsellor delivering the results confirmed her fears -- she was HIV positive. From then on, she swallowed her medicine as instructed.”

Evelyn’s mother eventually succumbed to the disease and passed away in 2015. With nowhere else to go at the time, she was forced to live with her aunt who made her life impossible. She stigmatized her, reminded her about her condition daily and told her to stay away from her children.

Evelyn kept her status a secret from her cousins with the fear that they would be afraid of her. However, it did not stay a secret for long; her aunt went on to let everyone know she was HIV positive. She even informed Evelyn’s teachers who eventually told the students.

“I had no friends because everyone was afraid to play with me or even talk to me. I spent most of my time reading,” Evelyn says. The stigma overwhelmed her, and she begged to live elsewhere. Lucky for her, her grandparents and her father took her in and made her feel welcome. Her grandparents protected her but were too old to provide enough.

“When I came to AMS I was surprised at how they cared for me and how welcoming they were to me. They fed me, gave me medicine and renewed my hope in living positively. One of the counsellors told me that if I did everything right, I would live a long and healthy life.”

Soon after Evelyn joined the Victors Club where she took part in activities for the youth and children which made her feel at home. “At AMS we look after each other like family. In the Victors Club we advise each other, dance and share all we have together. During the youth days we celebrate life and enjoy being young while learning more about how to take care of ourselves as young people living with HIV.”

When asked what advice she would give to others, Evelyn said, “I would advise mothers who are HIV positive to adhere to their medication and to do all they can to keep their children from contracting HIV.”

And most importantly, “Take your medication and do not allow stigma to wear you down.”

As for the future, Evelyn shared, “I want to become a doctor so that I can help the children living with HIV just like Alive Medical Services has helped me.”

Just like Evelyn, all adolescent girls and young women living with HIV who come to AMS are not only given free holistic HIV care, but they are also empowered with knowledge and given services on sexual and reproductive health to ensure that an HIV-free generation is not only a dream. All this and more has been made possible through generous donors like you and for that, the Alive Medical Services family thanks you.

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May 8, 2018
Girls at Alive Medical Services: Nadia's Story

By Dr. Pasquine Ogunsanya | Executive Director

When Nadia was 10 years old, she was hospitalized for an entire month. She had no idea she was HIV positive until months later - and she didn't realize the weight HIV carried until she returned to primary school.

"My teachers would always say you can't do this, you can't do that," Nadia said. "They acted like I was so fragile. Like I could faint at any moment."

For months, Nadia felt isolated. The kids at school didn't understand why the teachers treated her the way that they did, and Nadia couldn't understand it either. When she took her medication, she felt fine - but for some reason, her teachers thought she was anything but. Tired of all the special treatment, Nadia stopped taking her medication, hoping that everyone would treat her like a normal person again.

Once Nadia's mother realized what her daughter was doing, she brought Nadia to Alive Medical Services (AMS) for counselling. Day after day, Nadia sat with the counsellors and they spoke to her about good adherence and living positively. Soon after, Nadia began engaging with the Victor's Club, AMS' youth program for adolescents living with HIV.

"When I got to secondary level, I started to let it go," Nadia said. "I thought to myself: I have HIV. That can't be changed. And I can live with that."

In time, Nadia began singing, dancing, and making friends at Victor's Club. This past summer, AMS staff trained Nadia to become a youth peer educator, giving her the skills to counsel other youth living with HIV, and refer them to the clinic for treatment.

Now 18, Nadia hopes to attend university next year. Eventually, she hopes to become a counsellor for HIV-positive children herself.

"I want HIV-positive children to know that living a positive life is not that hard," Nadia said. "You can live beyond other people's expectations. You can achieve what others can achieve, and more. It's important not to be afraid."

Your support to this project has helped Alive Medical Services reach young people like Nadia, along with mothers, babies and young children infected with and/or affected by HIV. Just last quarter, over 340 women received pre- and post-natal care; 1,046 youth were reached through our Victor's Club program; and more than 120 infants were confirmed HIV-negative after enrolling in our prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV program. All of this wouldn't have been possible without the generosity of partners like you, and we are so grateful for your support.

Ever since school let out, Nadia has spent her days volunteering at AMS. She helps measure the weight, height, and health status of children at triage, working alongside the nurses and helping whenever she can.

"I want to work with children because they are the future of tomorrow," Nadia said. "They should know that HIV can't stop them."

Thank you for keeping Alive Medical Services and our clients in your hearts.

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