Strong call for greater emphasis on HIV Prevention
A section of those gathered for the PANCAP AIDS forum as they prepare for the sticking of a cake in honour of the occasion.
A section of those gathered for the PANCAP AIDS forum as they prepare for the sticking of a cake in honour of the occasion.

THE PAN Caribbean Partnership Against HIV&AIDS (PANCAP), in collaboration with the CARICOM Secretariat, last Thursday held an HIV/AIDS forum in observance of World AIDS

Coordinator of the PANCAP Coordinating Unit, Mr. Dereck Springer presents hampers to NAPS Programme Manager, Dr. Rhonda Moore  for the HIV Food Bank.
Coordinator of the PANCAP Coordinating Unit, Mr. Dereck Springer presents hampers to NAPS Programme Manager, Dr. Rhonda Moore for the HIV Food Bank.

Day 2016.
Staged under the theme “Hands Up for #HIV Prevention,” it was a sobering event held on the ground floor of the east/west corridors of the CARICOM Secretariat.

It brought together stakeholders from PANCAP, the CARICOM Secretariat, the Global Fund for HIV, Public Health Ministry/National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS), civil society organizations and the local media.
Among the key stakeholders and invitees present were: Coordinator of the PANCAP Co-ordinating Unit, Mr. Dereck Springer; Deputy CARICOM Secretary General, Ms. Manorma Soeknanan; Assistant Secretary General (HSD), Dr. Douglas Slater; Ambassador Colin Grandison; Global Fund Project Director, Dr. Shanti Singh; NAPS Programme Manager, Dr. Rhonda Moore; and NAPS VCT Coordinator, Ms. Debra Success Hall.

Heading the list of speakers was Mr. Dereck Springer who applauded the decision by UNAIDS

CARICOM Staffer, Ms. Chie Clarke thrills the hearts of the gathering at the World AIDS Day forum.
CARICOM Staffer, Ms. Chie Clarke thrills the hearts of the gathering at the World AIDS Day forum.

to host the 2016 observances with the theme “Hands Up for HIV Prevention” and made a strong call for greater emphasis to be placed on HIV Prevention in Health Care campaigns and education initiatives.
The PANCAP Co-ordinator, in his opening remarks, also proposed that: “As we reflect on the progress we have made over the years, it is important that we acknowledge the significant contributions of people who are living and affected by HIV and AIDS.”

He reflected on 23 years ago, first working as an HIV & AIDS Counsellor at the GPHC’s Genito Urinary (GUM) Clinic and recounted: “It was at a time when people were coming in when they were already ‘full blown’ AIDS and survival was limited sometimes to a few days or a few weeks or a few months.”
“Every time you visited the ward at the Georgetown Public Hospital what you saw were people who were suffering, and people who were neglected and people who were stigmatized – not just by the health care providers but by their families and the rest of the society,” Springer dolefully recounted. Such was the painful reality of living with HIV and AIDS during those days.

Springer said he highlighted this scenario, as a means of reminding those assembled, of ‘Where we were initially’ and the progress we have made over the years.
“Today we have been able to place about 52 per cent of the people who are HIV-positive, and as we move towards ‘Test and Treat,’ people can be placed on treatment, as soon as they test positive,” he emphasised.

He recalled that in the early 60s and throughout the 90s when HIV was considered a death sentence, the emphasis was on prevention tools such as condoms, abstinence and having one faithful partner. “However, with the advent of HIV medication and the countless media stories about people living longer with HIV, the key message of using prevention tools has somewhat declined over the last few years,” Mr. Springer said.

Springer concurred with the chairman that over the last two years not as much emphasis had been placed on prevention, and said that UNAIDS had recognized the critical importance of refocusing on HIV Prevention. Hence the theme: “Hands Up for HIV Prevention.”
He said it was for everyone to do his/her own introspection to determine what might be making us vulnerable to HIV, adding “And if we recognize that there are vulnerabilities and risks in our lives, then we need to take steps to ensure we address those, and acknowledge the importance of working with our friends, family and the rest of society to address prevention. He stressed the need to scale up the response to HIV, in order to achieve the aspirational goal that UNAIDS has set itself, of ending AIDS by 2030.

Mr. Springer said credit must go to the PAN Caribbean Partnership as it continued to provide bold leadership in the region, and continued to advocate at the global and regional level, as well as at the national for free HIV-financing to ensure that we do achieve that goal.
Meanwhile, Mr. Douglas Slater commended the World AIDS Day forum and all who worked making it the success it was. Alluding to the graphic scenario painted by Springer, about the sufferings of people living with AIDS in the 1990s he remarked: “There are few diseases in the history of mankind that have elicited such emotions as HIV and AIDS, acknowledging the many family members that might have been lost along the way.

Mr. Slater said he is looking forward to 2030, “When we shall end HIV & AIDS,” if not before. “But it depends on all of us, and I think we should be responsible enough and take responsibility as individuals,” he said. He alluded to the stigma and blame game involved, and urged that a responsible approach should be taken to prevent HIV – one which says: “It should start with me.”
He said that if each of us remembers and pays mind to the causes of HIV and do what is necessary to prevent the spread, “Then I think it would go a long way. When you start with you as an individual, you will better be able to convey that message to your children and other family members and to the wider society.”

And Deputy Secretary General, Dr. Manoma Soeknandan who says she is a strong advocate for prevention and for ending AIDS, said it depended on “each one of us being responsible enough, being prepared to change one’s attitude and sexual behaviours. As long as we do not want to do it, (behavior change) it’s (AIDS) not going to end.
She said that persons often forget what family members have to go through – all the sacrifices when loved ones become infected and are living with HIV and AIDS. “What they have to bear because of us not wanting to change our behavior and our attitude.”

The Programme which had as a main feature, the donation of a quantity of food hampers to NAPS by the CARICOM Secretariat for the National HIV Food Bank. The event was also spiced with cultural pieces by artistes in direct support and other civil society artistes.

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