Health service providers 'insensitive' to teens living with HIV/AIDS

Dr Faizal Sulliman  at the 7th International conference on Peer Education, Sexuality, HIV and AIDS at KICC on June 16, 2016. PHOTO| ANTHONY NJAGI

What you need to know:

  • He said many clinics in the Counties and in learning institutions which target adolescents are not friendly.
  • In some of those clinics, the staff mock and humiliate those living with the condition who seek their services.
  • This causes a lot of stigma and in some cases the young adults fail to attend the clinics out of fear of being humiliated.

The National Organisation of Peer Educators has urged health service providers to be more sensitive when handling adolescents living with HIV/AIDS as this will lead to the prevention of more deaths and better understanding of how to live with the condition.

These sentiments were echoed by Dr Faizul Sulliman during the second day of the 7th Edition of the National Organisation of Peer Educators (NOPE) at Kenyatta International Convention Centre yesterday. Dr Faizul said that many of the service providers were not sensitised to dealing with adolescents, treating them like adults and causing a lot of stigmatisation among them.

CLINICS NOT FRIENDLY

He said many clinics in the Counties and in learning institutions which target adolescents are not friendly. In some of those clinics, the staff mock and humiliate those living with the condition who seek their services. This causes a lot of stigma and in some cases the young adults fail to attend the clinics out of fear of being humiliated.

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta  is received by Mr National Organisation of Peer Educators, Executive Director , Mr Philip Waweru   during the official opening of the 7th International conference on Peer Education, Sexuality, HIV and AIDS at KICC on June 15, 2016. PHOTO| ANTHONY NJAGI 

 NOPE executive director Mr Phillip Waweru said that in some learning institutions especially primary and secondary schools, learners living with HIV/AIDS are prevented from playing, eating and interacting with fellow students.

This leads to demoraralisation of the affected students, who sometimes drop out of school. Mr Waweru added that in some clinics where adolescents go to seek for services, they are taken through the same process as adults which leaves them confused about how to handle their condition. Mr Waweru stressed on the need to treat adolescents sensitively and teach them on how to handle their condition.

 “Most of the affected people in this age group have little awareness about their condition and they sometimes leave the treatment clinics even more confused,” said Mr Waweru. 

 Mr Waweru said that in some counties, adolescents who are injected with HIV/AIDS treatment drugs were viewed as drug addicts. This, he said, is due to ignorance among the public about the condition. He cited Mombasa as one of the counties where this attitude is prevalent, adding that this makes it difficult for the more than 18,000 adolescents living with the condition in the area to seek treatment.

 Mr Waweru added that there is need for a more comprehensive, supportive and conducive legal framework to handle the affairs of adolescents living with HIV/AIDS. This framework will see to it that the adolescents living with the condition are not harassed and their human rights are not violated.

Participants attending the 7th International conference on Peer Education, Sexuality, HIV and AIDS at KICC on June 16, 2016. PHOTO| ANTHONY NJAGI 

 MITIGATION

Mr Waweru said that NOPE is working with the organisers of the Kenya Music and Drama Festivals to spread awareness about HIV/AIDS. The adolescents targeted for awareness are in leaning institutions which participate in these festivals, thus making it an ideal forum to spread awareness on social issues, he said.

Dancers entertain during the official opening of the 7th International conference on Peer Education, Sexuality, HIV and AIDS at KICC on June 15, 2016. First Lady Mrs Margaret Kenyatta was the chief guest during the there day conference which ends on Friday. PHOTO| ANTHONY NJAGI

The NOPE conference is hosting more than 15,000 delegates from 10 countries. The annual event seeks to create awareness on HIV/AIDS and also to educate care givers and educators. Ambassadors of change will be charged with spreading awareness on HIV/AIDS, its prevention and treatment.  On the youth day was designated as an adolescents’ day and musicians Mbuvi and T-Broz entertained the delegates with their popular hits.

Presently, NOPE has more than 20,000 ambassadors of change spread all the counties in the country.

The conference was officially opened by the First Lady Margaret Kenyatta. In her speech the First Lady made a clarion call: we must make sure that we make a decisive blow to HIV for us to reach the target-zero new infection, zero new deaths and zero stigma and discrimination.