This project will provide training courses for HIV health workers to improve health care access and enforce legal protections, supply educational materials and support hospital based services for people living with HIV/Aids in 8 hospitals in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Quang Ninh and Thanh Hoah districts. Stigma and discrimination is the main obstacle for people living with HIV/Aids to access public health care and education services and needs to be addresses through changes to discriminatory attitude and behaviours.
Project partners
This project works with a wide range of groups to deliver the project objectives including community-based support groups, hospital based healthcare workers, people living with HIV/Aids and the Vietnam Institute of Human Rights.
Project activities, objectives and outcomes
1. Run workshops for community based groups who support people living with HIV/Aids to increase their awareness of their legal rights and responsibilities regarding both healthcare and access to education.
2. Work with the Preventive AIDS Centers of Ha Noi and HCMC, to increase the capacity and awareness of healthcare workers at the municipal and district levels to fulfill their responsibilities, including confidentiality, quality care for adult people living with HIV/Aids and orphans and vulnerable children, and universal precautions.
3. Support the 'HIV Friendly corner' in three of Hanoi's district and municipal hospitals as they promote the daily direct contact and interaction between health staff and people living with HIV/Aids.
This serves to further break down stigma and discrimination and also provides important access point to educational materials to improve quality of life.
4. Review, adapt and reprint education and communication materials that support campaigns about legal entitlements as outlined by the Government of Vietnam for people living with HIV/Aids and also orphans and vulnerable children.
Project background:
According to UNAIDS, 33.2 million people worldwide were living with HIV
in 2007. Approximately one person in every 60 households in Vietnam
lives with the virus.
While Vietnam is facing a rising number of HIV infections, stigma and discrimination against PLHIV still remains and is the main obstacle for people living with HIV/Aids and orphans and vulnerable children to access public health care and education services.
Changes to discriminatory attitude and behaviours are needed if discrimination and exclusion are to be addressed, and vulnerable people empowered to represent their needs and concerns.
This is the third and final year of the project run by CARE Australia. Following this, the hospitals will take over their own ongoing training/support programs for HIV/Aids prevention and care. Through better understanding of their legal entitlements, community groups will be better placed to pursue discussions with local Government staff and policy makers.