People have better access to treatment
When communities acknowledge the reality of HIV, they start using the existing services. They also mobilize their own efforts to improve their access to treatments.
"The AIDS Competence Process improves the Return on Investment of services providers." Sandrine Ruppol, Belgian Technical Cooperation
Back to results on HIV
"Communities report improved individual health practices [e.g. hygiene, desire for information] and access to more health services [e.g. VCT sites, ART]." UNAIDS evaluation (2005)
Some examples:
 Truck-drivers obtain HIV tests at night Truck-drivers in Katma, a trucker's stop in Uganda, said that although they were willing to have an HIV test, they found it impossible: "The health center where tests are available is only 4km away, but it is only open from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, while we never get to Katma before 6:00 or 7:00 pm." Soon after a SALT visit, they started advocating and they succeeded: a team from the health center comes now every Thursday night to Katma with testing kits. Truck drivers can have tests any time between 8:00 pm and 01:00 am. |
 | No gossips with a mobile testing center In Ieta, Bougainville (Papua New Guinea), young people shared: "There is a VCT centre 200m from here in the hospital. We do not go there because people will gossip if they see us going in. We will ask the Provincial AIDS Council for a mobile testing centre in our community." |
 Linking services with demand When a community in Kinshasa did its self-assessment, they realized that "we are almost out of ARVs. If we do not find new treatment soon, people will die." Facilitations linked the community to a testing center 500m from there where ARVs almost reach their expiration date. In another neighbourhood of Kinshasa, the only testing center, held by the presbyterians parish, was sometimes out of treatment for several months. RDCCompétence, the National Facilitation Team, helped the center to put pressure on the National Plan against HIV. At present, the delivery of treatment is regular. |
More experiences on Access to treatment
