For the many children in Rwanda who are HIV positive, life can look bleak and hopeless. AEE Rwanda, through the Ubaka Ejo project in partnership with USAID, created a network of case workers to visit the families of children with HIV and linkage coordinaters who ensure that the children's experiences with the health services are as positive as possible. Because the case workers and linkage coordinators come from the same communities as the children they help, they are trusted more than outside medical staff.
Honorine, 42, is a member of a shoemakers collective, formed under another arm of the project, and is a case worker with the Ubaka Ejo OVC program. On this morning she has climbed the steep hill to the home of Cedric, a ten-year-old boy living with HIV. Honorine visits children like Cedric on most days, to check if they are going to school, if they are taking their medication correctly, and to share advice on how to manage their HIV.
Honorine also talks to the children’s parents, working with them to keep their child healthy and in school. Honorine says, “we help them, especially the children living with HIV, to accept their status, to avoid stigma, to avoid depression.”
Honorine's commitment to her clients extends beyond the life of the program, saying, “we are volunteers, we are not getting paid. As we built the relationships with the children, we will keep them after the program ends. These are our children, they are Rwandan children. We need to help each other.”
Brigette is a linkage coordinator working with girls and boys attending the Rwampara health center. The children meet regularly as group to learn more about their condition and how to stay healthy. Linkage coordinators like Brigette will accompany children at their appointments with medical staff. An equally important part of their role is to help the medical staff understand the children's concerns - why they might be reluctant to attend, why they might not take their medications.
For the boys and girls, meeting together and sharing their stories brings hope for a future.
Jean-Baptiste, and 11 year old member of the group say that, “before AEE introduced this project, there were a lot of conversations we couldn’t have but now we have them and there has been a lot of impact and change in our lives. My life has drastically changed and now I feel more self-aware because of what I’ve been taught here.
“Before, I felt that coming and joining the group would be very shameful due to the possibility of meeting someone I know, or my friends asking me if I also take that medication or whether I am also sick; overall, that was a challenge, but after learning more and having more conversations we have no fear.
“Before I thought I wouldn’t survive or live long. But now I feel capable to work hard and achieve my dreams because the sickness I have can be treated and I can reach my goals because I actually have time.”
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