HIV/AIDS COUNSELLING AND SENSITIZATION
We encourage, strengthen and motivate many communities to seek help and start on their Antiretroviral drugs after learning of their status.
HIV/AIDS
HIV does not make people dangerous to know, so you can shake their hands and give them a hug: Heaven knows they need it.
We continue to witness a huge number of young people, mothers and community die due to the HIV/AIDS virus.
We run awareness and invite doctors to offer advice, blood testing and counselling so as to help infected parents/community to acquire help.
We call on movements and organise health talks with children, mothers,families and communities at large.
HIV/AIDS is literally devastating much of Uganda's population and a bigger number of people are unaware more so less interested about this health crisis/disease which is creating millions of orphans, not only in Uganda but around the World.
HIV/AIDS is one of the major cause for many children joining the streets every day, the loss of their parents and the inadequacy in them attaining their basic and fundamental needs continues to be the push factor.
Through our programs, we have reached out to over a thousand street children through our day and night outreach program by providing them with free medical aid for minor health issues, food & water, clothing, counselling among other necessities that they cannot access on the streets. Through medical treatments in hospitals we are able to trace and know the infected children who we immediately take away from the streets to the shelter so as to start them back on their medication.
Majority of the street children once they joined the streets of Kampala, they never express/talk of their health status due to the fear of rejection, denial of chances to join shelters as many different organizations are unwilling to take on the responsibility that comes with having a "Positive Kid" in the shelter and furthermore the stigmatization that continues to hinder the growth and engagement of many infected children in the different aspects of life.
Life becomes beyond very hard and completely depressing as going off medication for many street children becomes the "New Normal living" until it weakens their bodies due to the abandonment of the antiretroviral drugs while on streets.
We have also partnered with some grassroots projects and hospitals to provide free services to street children and communities who end up committed in remand homes and carry out monthly visits to juvenile remand homes to offer both physical and emotional support that is: - Free treatment and checkups are conducted, free counseling and peer training is offered to the children and utmost discretion practiced by our educators and counselor. This is also one of the ways the children and women especially those with HIV are shown love because one of the most terrible poverty has been proved to be loneliness and feeling unloved.
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HIV/AIDS is one of the major reasons children end up on the streets, we have adopted programs that are geared to educating and sensitizing them on the risks of the virus. Much of Uganda is devastated by HIV/AIDS and thus creating a large sum of orphans which is leaving many children abadnoned and left to fetch on their own.
Ways we extend assistance:- •Rescue • Rehabilitation • Hospital Appointments•• Picking Antiretroviral drugs from HIV/AIDS centre with the children and the women.
• Helping pay for medical tests and purchase certain medication required.
• Keeping medical cards for women and the children.
• Reminding and Transporting them to the Hospital.
• Providing food supplies and things to use.
SHELTER COUNSELING
Counseling is a daily program every day at the shelter, we have sessions with all the children and discuss how the day was, their feelings and how best to improve everything. This allows us to understand and know how best to improve, work on the challenges that they face among themselves. Many of our children come from different family/tribal settings meaning they are all challenged in different ways and their way of seeing things differs from the rest, through regular counselling we are able to create a free environment where each of the child feels free to express, share anything that is hurting or causing discomfort to them at large. Thus improving relationships among all the children.
DRUG SENSITIZATION
"Addiction begins with the hope that something ''out there'' can instantly fill up the emptiness inside."
Many children join the streets with a hope for the better future and reality hits them differently as the life and way of living turns them into drug users and addicts.
Majority of the children learn drugs on the streets due to the excessive coldness and the peer pressure of other older street boys. These children go through things that we cannot barely imagine.
Our children have experienced things children should never go through. Rejection by family, social exclusion by the society, trauma, violence and abuse are their reality and our work is to give these children the support they need to cope and get through their experiences. We do this through group sessions as well as one on one session.
