SCORA TWAWEZA. (SCORA we can) – Kenya (MSAKE)

Name of the activity: SCORA TWAWEZA. (SCORA we can)

Country/NMO: Kenya (MSAKE)

Program: HIV/AIDS & Other STIs

Contact information: [email protected]

Type of the activity: Campaign

General description:

why this discrimination does exist. The data collected will guide our workshop scheduled for the 23rd of November which will basically be an interactive session between support groups of PLHIV and the a few select medical students. The questionnaire/ survey carried out only brings to light the self-reported forms of discrimination but will serve to help the students reflect on why the discrimination exists among them. On the other hand, we hope the interaction with the support groups will be an eye-opener for the students and bring to light the actually observed forms of discrimination straight from the HIV clients and give the students an opportunity to realize how it affects these patients and hopefully humanize them in a bid to decrease the discrimination. The select students will then be tasked to share what they learnt when they return to their respective universities and there, form larger teams to go to communal high schools to increase awareness about discrimination against PLHIV.
There are 9 medical schools in Kenya: University of Nairobi, Moi University, Kenyatta University, Egerton University, Maseno University, Kenya Methodist University, Uzima College, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and Mount Kenya University. Students from each of the 9 universities shall take part in the day’s activity.
We as SCORA thought it would be best to carry out this activity in Kisumu County. A county based in the Western region of Kenya. This is because the HIV prevalence of Kisumu alone is 3.4 times higher than the national prevalence at 19.9%. It is ranked the 3rd highest nationally of people living with HIV/ AIDS and the 2nd in terms of new HIV infections annually with about 909 new infections every year.
We would like the medical students to interact more with PLHIV, acquire a sense of empathy towards them and most importantly, help them put aside their religious and cultural beliefs to ensure patient care is always their primary goal. Hopefully by the end of this day, we will have achieved our goal of zero fear, zero stigma and zero discrimination.

Focus area:

Removing stigmatization and empowering people living with HIV

Problem statement:

Stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV by healthcare workers undermining fundamental rights of HIV positive individuals including the right to health and freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment.
million people living with HIV by 2016. The burden of HIV and AIDS was estimated to account for 29% of annual deaths, 20% of maternal mortality and 15% of deaths of children under the age of 5 in the country with new HIV infection estimated at 71, 034 among adults and 6, 613 among children. As medical students, stakeholders in the health sector and future health practitioners, we have a key role to play in ensuring PLHIV obtain the quality health care and the pandemic is controlled.
We as SCORA thought it would be best to carry out this activity in Kisumu County. A county based in the Western region of Kenya. This is because the HIV prevalence of Kisumu alone is 3.4 times higher than the national prevalence at 19.9%. It is ranked the 3rd highest nationally of people living with HIV/ AIDS and the 2nd in terms of new HIV infections annually with about 909 new infections every year.

Target groups and beneficiaries:

Target group: medical students, Highschool students and general public (on platform) Beneficiary : People living with HIV by reducing discrimination.

Objectives and indicators of success:

Aims:
To critically assess, identify and effectively tackle factors that lead to stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) by Kenyan medical students as well as raise communal awareness on discrimination.
Objectives:
To critically assess factors leading to discrimination against people living with HIV by Kenyan medical students.
To give medical students a chance to see things from the other end of the spectrum by holding an engaging forum between the future health care workers and people living with HIV.
To raise awareness in the community concerning discrimination of people living with HIV/ AIDS.
Ultimately, to reduce discrimination among the future medical practitioners and the community at large against people living with HIV/AIDS.

Methodology:

Theoretical survey/ analysis on where discrimination arises among health care practitioners through the use of simple, tailored questionnaires.
Training of medical student volunteers in a workshop in Kisumu County, During the training, the facilitators will be people living with HIV and they will focus on their first hand experiences with cases of discrimination.
There will be a one hour talk by a resident professional from National Aids control council.
Awareness walk in the streets of Kisumu town to raise awareness among the community living in this regions. This will also be informed by the outcome of support group visit.
Visit to PLHIV support groups in Kisumu.This will be interactive sessions between volunteers and support group members. To provide first hand informations of their experience and provide possible suggestions on what can be done in each scenario to curb this discrimination in their view.
Online campaign on SCORA and MSAKE channels that is, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The aim is both to raise awareness of best ways to curb discrimination and also to win more volunteers outside MSAKE spectrum into fighting discrimination against people living with HIV.
Medical students’ sensitization on issues of discrimination against PLHIV sessions across the country in all 9 universities under MSAKE.The aim is to get more students across the country getting involved in our 2nd phase of our project, which is community outreach.
Community outreach project targeting highschool students across the country to educate them on how they can also be involved in ensuring zero discrimination against PLHIV. (18 highschools in 6 counties)

Plans for evaluation:

This will be done in the following ways:
1.Baseline and Final Questionnaires – These will be administered to the members attending the workshop, in Highschools visits and during medical students’ sensitization sessions and will help us gauge where we are before we start and where we will be after the program.

2.Report writing. Evaluation of achievement of our objectives will largely be done using reports sent by lead volunteers from each university. The report may inform remodelling of our approach in other university teams that will be still carrying out the project. The chief aim being to achieve all of our obejectives.

3.Financial audit. This will be done internally by Treasurer in the working Group at the end every phase and externally by MSAKE Finance Officer at the end of the peoject.

4.SWOT analysis. At the end of the every phase of the project Working Group will spend its last meeting by analysing the outcome of the entire activity through SWOT systems. This will eneble us to remodel the next phase to address the short falls identified in the preceeding phase.

5.Collection of feedback. This will be done largely through word of mouth from support group chairpersons, qustionnaires administered on volunteers, medical and highschool students,and reports from our lead volunteers.