Last April the government of South Africa launched a new upscaled HIV treatment & prevention plan. Rumblings of actual implementation of the program now are coming up and there is a certain degree of controversy over the efficacy of the particular plan to intoduce HIV Counseling and testing in schools. Basically this would be a plan to avail voluntary counselling and testing at schools on weekends and holidays starting in March.
Most criticism has come from those concerned about the psychological effects on school kids should they test positive. There is no clear cut way of dealing with this particular issue it seems and certain commentators are predicting disastrous consequences that would derail any benefit to be gained from the program. Grassroot Soccer is closely watching developments in this are, since we work directly in schools with students that will directly be affected by this program. One hopes that should the program go on, the right means of addressing positive results are in place. Some have suggested pushing the program forward in order to allow for proper research and planning for a response is done.
Showing posts with label HCT. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HCT. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Monday, October 11, 2010
Fun Day!
On Saturday Grassroot Soccer helped with a local fun run hosted by a local church, St Barnabas in Kwazakele township.The event started with a run/walk starting at 7 in the morning. We didn't attend this portion of the day, but it seems to have been successful, with winning runners winning prizes. Starting at 09.30 there was free HIV (pre- and post-) counseling and testing for participants on the day, and anyone from the community. We arrived around 10am along with 8 GRS coaches. Overall, 80 people were tested at the event.
GRS contributed shirts left over from our HCT for all individuals who tested. Our coaches led some Skillz activities with participants as part of the day's events. Us interns assisted with the group of kids 12 to 18 years old. The coaches led the kids in a game of Find the Ball and the Talk Show from Skillz 1.1. We participated in the talk show as "experts." Overall it was nice to participate in a community event targeted at local youths.
Another group of coaches led participants who were 18 and over, they led them in a discussion activity from Generation Skillz. The kids in our section were shy at first but in the end it was great to see their participation in the activities!
The church folk were very friendly and the day was filled with song and dance. For long periods of the program I couldn't understand what was being said, but from the bits of translation I got I was happy to learn about the messages of good healthy living being promoted particularly for youths in the community.
GRS contributed shirts left over from our HCT for all individuals who tested. Our coaches led some Skillz activities with participants as part of the day's events. Us interns assisted with the group of kids 12 to 18 years old. The coaches led the kids in a game of Find the Ball and the Talk Show from Skillz 1.1. We participated in the talk show as "experts." Overall it was nice to participate in a community event targeted at local youths.
Another group of coaches led participants who were 18 and over, they led them in a discussion activity from Generation Skillz. The kids in our section were shy at first but in the end it was great to see their participation in the activities!
The church folk were very friendly and the day was filled with song and dance. For long periods of the program I couldn't understand what was being said, but from the bits of translation I got I was happy to learn about the messages of good healthy living being promoted particularly for youths in the community.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
HCT
Play to Win, Test to live!
This was the tagline to our Heritage Day HCT. The whole Port Elizabeth Staff: coaches, interns, staff and site-coordinator were assigned roles in this major holiday event based on GRS principles. It truly was Grassroot Soccer at work.
Often you read about the millions of people that play the game informally at the grassroot level and I have played there most of my life. This event was an opportunity for an organization that does social profit work such as ours to harness the popularity of the game among the youth in the area to provide them with some education (on HIV/AIDS), an opportunity to test for the disease and play the game they love.
My direct supervisor Titie was in charge of the overall planning of the event, a big big job considering our target of getting 250 players and community members tested. As interns we were assigned various roles before and during the tournament, doing our best to support her. It was perhaps a little more difficult to do considering the fact that we are still figuring out the lay of the land, and we did lack experience with an event quite like this one. We gave it our best though, and I think our multicultural intern team did a sterling job.
New Start and the South African Health Department were our testing partners; we bought 300 HIV testing kits and planned on other various logistics for the day. This included lunch, snacks, t-shirts, advertising, venue, media, entertainment and recruitment of players. It was certainly a bit of a squeeze leading up to the tournament, but it was great to see the kick off of the tournament as kids from Zwide, and surrounding townships.
The day's schedule, which I played a part in planning was based on teams rotating between playing football, participating in Find The Ball (led by several GRS coaches) and if they chose to - getting tested for HIV. Things started off a bit hairy, as teams arrived slightly later than planned and some of the testers were not fully prepared at the assigned start time. We did however get things started in decent time and as soon as the DJ got his music going the tournament was well and truly on! It was an explosion of house, all day!
Part of the plan of the tournament was to attract passing members of the public, in addition to the +100 kids playing in the tournament. I was impressed by the spirit displayed by the teams participating in the tournament. The kids were well aware of the fact that testing was an essential part of their success in the tournament and there was more than a few cases of teams coming to test together as teams. There was lots of dancing, singing and healthy competition as the kids were engrossed in a great day out of organized fun!
Find the Ball was an important activity, seeing as it highlights the important point that HIV cannot be detected from someone's appearance. We made sure that on the schedule that each team did Find the Ball before they tested. I personally feel that more educational opportunities are necessary in terms of future HCT's.
The football itself was a joy to watch. We pushed to involve 15 to 17 year olds, but there were more than a few players outside of this range. Part of the problem was partnering organizations struggling to find participants in the age group therefore enlisting younger and sometimes older kids. It worked out in the end, and the tournament went without too much incident involving the difference in age.
As for testing, the most important part of the day, we managed to get 189 people tested overall, and although we haven't received the full breakdown yet, we do know that 5 people tested positive for HIV. I was in charge of the testing area on the day, as far as directing people to the right places and my guess would be that 100 to 110 players were tested on the day (updates to follow as soon as I have them).
Every individual who tested received pre and post test counseling which is crucial when dealing with something as important as the result of an HIV test. Each person also received a t-shirt which was a token of their participation in our event. In my eyes this is another means of spreading the name of our organization in the community, as we seek to expand our work in the community. The tagline, Play to Win, Test to live! was also on the T-shirt, another way to encourage more people to know their HIV status in an era of epidemic.The individuals who would have tested positive would also be refereed to local resources available to help them live healthy lives. This includes a local HCT center, providing access to counseling and Antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) which are free to the public. I can only hope that these individuals as hurt as they may be by the news will eventually be aided by this knowledge as they seek to live their lives differently.
The HCT was a lesson in community engagement for me, and I think that there needs to be even more community based events where further opportunities to educate, inspire and provide access to services to communities that are plagued by lack. I was proud to be part of this event, and I look forward to playing a role in the next one.
Pictures........
This was the tagline to our Heritage Day HCT. The whole Port Elizabeth Staff: coaches, interns, staff and site-coordinator were assigned roles in this major holiday event based on GRS principles. It truly was Grassroot Soccer at work.
Often you read about the millions of people that play the game informally at the grassroot level and I have played there most of my life. This event was an opportunity for an organization that does social profit work such as ours to harness the popularity of the game among the youth in the area to provide them with some education (on HIV/AIDS), an opportunity to test for the disease and play the game they love.
My direct supervisor Titie was in charge of the overall planning of the event, a big big job considering our target of getting 250 players and community members tested. As interns we were assigned various roles before and during the tournament, doing our best to support her. It was perhaps a little more difficult to do considering the fact that we are still figuring out the lay of the land, and we did lack experience with an event quite like this one. We gave it our best though, and I think our multicultural intern team did a sterling job.
New Start and the South African Health Department were our testing partners; we bought 300 HIV testing kits and planned on other various logistics for the day. This included lunch, snacks, t-shirts, advertising, venue, media, entertainment and recruitment of players. It was certainly a bit of a squeeze leading up to the tournament, but it was great to see the kick off of the tournament as kids from Zwide, and surrounding townships.
The day's schedule, which I played a part in planning was based on teams rotating between playing football, participating in Find The Ball (led by several GRS coaches) and if they chose to - getting tested for HIV. Things started off a bit hairy, as teams arrived slightly later than planned and some of the testers were not fully prepared at the assigned start time. We did however get things started in decent time and as soon as the DJ got his music going the tournament was well and truly on! It was an explosion of house, all day!
Part of the plan of the tournament was to attract passing members of the public, in addition to the +100 kids playing in the tournament. I was impressed by the spirit displayed by the teams participating in the tournament. The kids were well aware of the fact that testing was an essential part of their success in the tournament and there was more than a few cases of teams coming to test together as teams. There was lots of dancing, singing and healthy competition as the kids were engrossed in a great day out of organized fun!
Find the Ball was an important activity, seeing as it highlights the important point that HIV cannot be detected from someone's appearance. We made sure that on the schedule that each team did Find the Ball before they tested. I personally feel that more educational opportunities are necessary in terms of future HCT's.
The football itself was a joy to watch. We pushed to involve 15 to 17 year olds, but there were more than a few players outside of this range. Part of the problem was partnering organizations struggling to find participants in the age group therefore enlisting younger and sometimes older kids. It worked out in the end, and the tournament went without too much incident involving the difference in age.
As for testing, the most important part of the day, we managed to get 189 people tested overall, and although we haven't received the full breakdown yet, we do know that 5 people tested positive for HIV. I was in charge of the testing area on the day, as far as directing people to the right places and my guess would be that 100 to 110 players were tested on the day (updates to follow as soon as I have them).
Every individual who tested received pre and post test counseling which is crucial when dealing with something as important as the result of an HIV test. Each person also received a t-shirt which was a token of their participation in our event. In my eyes this is another means of spreading the name of our organization in the community, as we seek to expand our work in the community. The tagline, Play to Win, Test to live! was also on the T-shirt, another way to encourage more people to know their HIV status in an era of epidemic.The individuals who would have tested positive would also be refereed to local resources available to help them live healthy lives. This includes a local HCT center, providing access to counseling and Antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) which are free to the public. I can only hope that these individuals as hurt as they may be by the news will eventually be aided by this knowledge as they seek to live their lives differently.
The HCT was a lesson in community engagement for me, and I think that there needs to be even more community based events where further opportunities to educate, inspire and provide access to services to communities that are plagued by lack. I was proud to be part of this event, and I look forward to playing a role in the next one.
Pictures........
The Poster
Find The Ball
Interns with our big boss Mpumi (sunglasses) and Thamie, far right.
Some of the early birds
Skillz Banner
Some of the action from the boys' final.
Monday, September 20, 2010
The week ahead.
This week promises to be a big week as we prepare for our first HCT tournament** on Firday the 24th which is Heritage day in South Africa, a public holiday. This will be the first major Grassroot Soccer event I will witness. With a testing target of 250, the planning for this event has been nothing but large scale. Lets hope for good weather and a strong attendance.
As far as the student strike goes, one hopes for less violence and practical solutions. The situation as described earlier is a result of lots of time off for kids due to the teachers' strike and an extended holiday prior this, related to the football World Cup. There were no disruptions to my knowledge today. Plans are in place for Grade 12 to write their trial exams at individual schools. I'm not sure what the timeline fo that is, but the violence seems to have eased at least for the moment.
** Previously known as a VCT, the HCT (HIV Counseling and Testing) will be a soccer tournament involving 16 teams of 10 (6 girls' teams plus 10 boys' teams each with 10 players) that will serve as an avenue for these youths and members of the community to find out their HIV status.
As far as the student strike goes, one hopes for less violence and practical solutions. The situation as described earlier is a result of lots of time off for kids due to the teachers' strike and an extended holiday prior this, related to the football World Cup. There were no disruptions to my knowledge today. Plans are in place for Grade 12 to write their trial exams at individual schools. I'm not sure what the timeline fo that is, but the violence seems to have eased at least for the moment.
** Previously known as a VCT, the HCT (HIV Counseling and Testing) will be a soccer tournament involving 16 teams of 10 (6 girls' teams plus 10 boys' teams each with 10 players) that will serve as an avenue for these youths and members of the community to find out their HIV status.
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