Bridging the Gap: Conference Record [Abstract book, International Conference on AIDS (12th: 1998: Geneva, Switzerland)]

972 Abstracts 44176-44182

12th World AIDS Conference

S44176 Challenges in being a non-profit, community organisation
for children infected with/affected by HIV/AIDS
Amandah Lea1, D. Price2. 12827 Revelstoke Court, Vancouver B.C. V6T 1N8;
2The Humming Bird Kids Society, Vancouver B.C., Canada
Issue: Being able to respect rights of confidentiality and privacy while providing
support for children infected with/affected by HIV/AIDS and their families in the
greater Vancouver area, British Columbia, Canada.
Project: In 1996, the Hummingbird Kids Society (HKS) was established to
respond to the needs of children infected with/affected by HIV/AIDS. The name
of this organization is derived from the stories of British Columbia's aboriginal
people: "It is said that Hummingbird conjures up love as no other medicine does,
and that the Hummingbird feathers open the heart. If Hummingbird appears during
a time of great sorrow and pain, healing will soon follow." This vision to minimize
the suffering of children in a world of HIV/AIDS has been hampered immensely by
the need to raise funds without exploiting the vulnerability of children or families
and lack of accurate statistics about the number of children affected by HIV/AIDS.
Results: Care and attention was needed to provide support that allows families
to celebrate life occasionally free from HIV-related troubles. Social events organized can neither be publicly hosted by HKS, nor acknowledged as events funded
by (e.g.,) companies that supply anti-retroviral medications because children may
not know that they or their family members live with HIV.
Lessons Learned: Unique challenges exist because families want to protect the well-being of their children from AIDS-related stigma and health care
professionals want to protect the privacy of their clients.
|44177 Combination drug therapy: Inaccessibility in the Indian
context
Mandeep Dhaliwal. Lawyers Collective, HIV/AIDS Unit, 63 Ghoga Street,
Jalaram Jyot, 4th Floor, Janmabhoomi Marg, Fort, Mumbai, India 400 001, India
Issues: The right to health is a fundamental right guaranteed in the Constitution
of India. The right to health implies access to treatment and drugs. In India the
law inhibits access to the majority of drugs involved in combination therapy thus
making combination therapy even more inaccessible to PLWHA in India.
Description: The Lawyers Collective, through its HIV/AIDS Unit, responds to
the legal needs of PLWHA. The general aim of the HIV/AIDS Unit is to minimize
the spread of the HIV in India through the creation of an enabling and appropriate
legal environment which is cognisant of fundamental rights of all affected by the
HIV/AIDS epidemic. This implies protecting and promoting the right to health of
PLWHA, including access to combination drug therapy.
Results: Lawyers Collective HIV/AIDS Unit has come across several instances
in which PLWHA who could afford combination therapy were unable to access
the necessary drugs. Currently the various customs and drug laws in India make
combination drug therapy even more inaccessible for PLWHA.
Conclusions: Lawyers Collective HIV/AIDS Unit, as part of its integrationist
strategy to promote and protect the rights of PLWHA viz. the right to health and
access to treatment PLWHA, is advocating for easy access to combination drug
therapy for PLWHA. As it is combination drug therapy, is prohibitive in terms of
cost in the Indian context. Excessively bureaucratic procedures and exorbitant
duties of up to 85% levied upon many of the combination drugs in India under
the various drug and customs laws breach the right to health of PLWHA and are
thereby deemed unconstitutional.
144178 Combating discrimination faced by HIV infected at the
workplace
Srinath Maddur Mallikarjuna. Jagruthi 351 37Cross 7Main V Block JNR., 459 VI
Cross VII Block Jayanagar Bangalore 560082, India
Issue: There is a perceptible increase in India, on the number of HIV infected
people being traumatized at the workplace due to peer rejection and hostility from
employers, even leading to outright dismissal.
Project: An experimental intervention was planned in the city of Bangalore to
improve the working condition of 15 HIV positives who were facing peer rejection
and management hostility. The team consisted of a doctor, a psychologist and
a prominent Industrialist. This intervention included three sessions of one-hour
duration each addressed both individuals and groups. The pedagogy included
role-plays, audiovisual presentation with analogies and interactive exercises.
Results: 15 establishments were visited for this purpose. Except for one all the
other establishments accommodated their HIV positive employees. The rejected
employee, inturn, got placement in a different establishment.
Lessons Learned: Psycho-Educative intervention methodologies to tackle the
spiraling instances of discrimination at workplace encountered by numerous HIV
patients. Interactive sessions also help in dispelling many myths and misconceptions and paves way for the discriminated to get integrated with the mainstream.

44179 A study on the levels of physical and verbal harassment
of MSM's in public sex environment
Suman Lahiry. 11/B Ganaktuly, Dhaka 1205, Bangladesh
Objective: To evaluate the levels, locations and reasons of harassment of MSM's.
Methods: Interviews conducted amongst 100 (one hundred) MSM's at five public sex environments with a pre-set questionaire regarding levels of violence. This
was followed by the socio-cultural analysis of the rationale behind the violence.

Results: Out of 100 MSM's, 61% (61/100) were harassed more than one time
(even as high as 50 times). 12% (12/100) once in their life time and 7% (7/100)
never. The harassment is site-harassment and it is more in the park sites where
physical and verbal abuse is on a regular basis (specially if caught during sexual
act). The regular harassment of koti (self defined effiminate males) and male prostitutes by police, guards and occassionally by students, drug users and working
class are more. Financial exploitation is occassionally associated with violence.
Conclusion: The reasons for harassment are not purely homophobic response.
Recommendation: Laws around public morality and marginalised behaviour
to be repealed and human rights should be protected in order to promoting access
to sexual health and removing discrimination towards marginalised population.
44180 The HIV/AIDS perception as an obstacle in the efficacious
prevention in Bolivia: Transform the discriminatory
actors in potential subjects of change
Anne Saudan Valdez1, E. Valdez2. 1Casilla 5351, Cochabamba; 2lnstituto para
el Desarrollo Humano (IDH) Cochabamba, Bolivia
Issue: Based on 2 epidemiological surveys KAPS carried out in the general
population and health workers in the city of Cochabamba, the Institute for Human Development (IDH) has found that the perception of AIDS (knowledge)
determines an attitude of refusal towards persons with AIDS and impedes the
realisation of effective preventative actions.
Project: The IDH focuses the work in prevention and information towards the
population in order to avoid the transmision of HIV and permits living with persons
infected with HIV without fear. The activities of IDH are mainly concentrated in
"power-holders" such as the Army, Police Force, the Church and Health workers,
those predominantly responsible for the numerous violations of the rights of those
persons infected with HIV. The prevention towards these groups responds to the
individual needs and the role that each one holds in the discrimination chain. The
concept of human rights of infected persons is focused in a systematic manner in
the basic information on AIDS in legal and ethical aspects through resolution and
existing laws. The strategies used lay IDH also include lobbying and advocacy to
apply and improve progressive laws.
Results: The Church has integrated into its informative activities the support
and solidarity towards infected people. Other institutions, such as the Army, the
Police Force and the University are participating in the preventative process and
with respect to the human rights of those infected.
Lessons Learned: The global outlook on AIDS in social, sanitary, legal and
ethical aspects, as well as individual actions and the social environnment has
improved the efficaciousness of the preventative activities. In this sense IDH opts
to create links between the population and the different institutions, so as to give
each one the opportunity to have an active role in the prevention of AIDS.
S44181 Psycho-social needs of people living with HIV in Poland,
with emphasis on housing
Kasia Malinowska-Sempruch. UN Centre, PO Box 1, Warsaw 12, Poland
UNDP in Poland has been supporting the community of people living with HIV
since early 1995. One of our goals it to provide small grants to organizations
meeting psycho-social needs of those living with HIV. As the epidemic evolves,
the requests put forward to us are changing. Lack of housing continues to be the
main problem, however. Even though, on the social policy level, the agreement
is that people living with HIV should be integrated in larger society, half way
houses continue to be popular and our support for them is increasing. So is
our assistance to flats occupied by a few persons who are HIV infected and
small "villages" where persons with HIV/AIDS live and work. People most often
benefiting from them include: released prisoners, long time drug users with no
family ties, individuals whose families are refusing to accept their HIV status,
the homeless or people who simply want to "wait out" a few months before they
come back to their neighborhoods and families. As the number of people with HIV
who classify themselves as "individuals with no place to go" is large in Poland,
these institutions continue to serve a very productive role. Obvious shortcoming of
living in institutions include: social isolation, lack of interest in returning to greater
society, disinterest in work or schooling, lack of work possibilities as a person has
no choice in what part of Poland they want to live, difficulties in access to health
care, further breakage of links with ones families and friends.
Conclusions: Even though, in principle, separation is not a goal to reach for
when assessing people living with HIV, in a country like Poland where new social
structures, new social policy, are still in the process of forming, to a large number
of people living with HIV, an "institutional" solution to their housing problem is an
appealing one.
44182 Suit against ministry of defense because of
discrimination in the military force
Victora Marte-Croquer. Ave Romulo Gallegos EDF Maracay Piso 11 Apto 21 El
Marques Caracas 1070, Venezuela

Objetives: To defend and obtain recognition of Human Rihts for four personnel
of the Military Force excluded, discriminated and stigmatizated because of their
HIV condition
Design: Legal and judicial actions against Ministry of Defense
Methods: Study of the cases and evaluation of Human Rights infringed. Study
of several actions to be taken and determination of the most convenient. Submi