Professional Documents
Culture Documents
AND ACHIEVEMENTS
REPORT -2003-2009
Preface Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
June 2009
HIV confronts the world with many challenges. The humanitarian organizations have worked hard
to meet them, making up for a lack of action in the earlier years of the epidemic. But far more needs to be
done, in partnership with governments but also above all, with communities whose wisdom and resilience
offer so much to the HIV response. That is why the Red Cross Societies around the world have come together
in a Global Alliance on HIV with the resolve to do much more and much better in our collective Endeavour
against this epidemic in prevention, treatment, care and support, and in tackling stigma and discrimination.
This report highlights the efforts taken by the Indian Red Cross society Tamil Nadu Branch
to bring assistance to some of the most vulnerable people in the state infected and affected by HIV /
AIDS from 2003 – 2009 at a cost of over Rs one crore per annum with the with the support of the In-
ternational Federation of the Red Cross, Italian red cross and Tamil Nadu Aids control society.
The youth peer education has been very successful and provides a platform in spreading aware-
ness and educating the youth against HIV. The 3 s link programme Service, support and stigma is the
only project in the country which has been appreciated by both the national and international agencies.
The 8 mobile Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre (ICTC) & 2 Information, Education and Communica-
tion (IEC) vehicles allotted by The Tamil Nadu state AIDS control society, to IRCS District Branches has helped
in motivating people to be tested for HIV and thus get help to look after themselves and protect others.
A support centre for the children less than 6 years of age of the HIV/AIDS affected par-
ents for giving care, supplemental nutritious food, providing pre- school, non-formal play
way education, medical care and personal hygiene was established in 2004 in Dharmapuri.
The treatment centre in Krishnagiri for the various problems of HIV patients including the supply
of ART is also well received by the patients
Finally I thank the patron in chief, the secretary of the state branch, the district secretaries and
the Federation for making this attempt possible and successful.
As peers are influential and remain the primary or only source of information
about sex and sexuality, peer learning plays a very important role in getting information
across to the youth. The program therefore aims at helping youth increase their confi-
dence, knowledge and skills in relation to their sexual development, and to reduce the
risk of HIV/AIDS, other STIs and unwanted pregnancies.
The activities range from informal conversations to organized group sessions and can
take place in settings such as youth clubs, schools or playgrounds.
Youth Peer Education Programme was started in June 2004 in the highly preva-
lent districts of Tamilnadu-Salem, Namakkal, Erode & Dharmapuri. From April 2008
onwards it is shifted to Perambalur, Trichy, Villupuram Thanjavur and Tirunelveli districts.
The cost of the project is Rs.8 lakhs per district per year.
Empowering Youth
PREVENTION- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
Youth Peer Education Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Programme Report -2003-2009
Through youth Peer education Programme 4400 school and college peer edu-
cators and peer group members were trained about HIV/AIDS per district per year.
About 80 awareness programmes were conducted for various target groups like
public, women, self help groups, village people and youth in which about 6000 persons
were benefited per district per year.
The youth to youth peer education program showed that young people need skills
as well as information, to enable them to make informed decisions about their sexual activity,
or to negotiate safer sex. There is an indication also that the program is gaining the support of
parents and community leaders especially for the involvement of young girls who otherwise
have little means of getting information and receiving life skills. The training module, which
is highly participatory, involves both sexes in equal proportion, making the training lively.
Empowering Youth
CARE AND SUPPORT- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
3S link– Hospital project Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
The 3 s LINK Programme (Service Support and Stigma)of the Indian Red Cross
Society in partnership with the Govt. Hospital for chest diseases in Chennai in the
service of people living with HIV/AIDS has successfully completed 5 years and
has entered the 6th year. The project was inaugurated in 2004 by the then Secre-
tary General Dr. Vimala Ramalingam and Dr., Mannan Ganguly, Health Advisor, IFRC.
The project Provides need based services, referral services, linking Com-
munity Support Centers for continuous care of HIV/AIDS patients and counseling
to People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) attending/ admitted in hospital and ad-
dress stigma through awareness generation. About 6000 inpatients are given nutri-
tional support and 400 hygiene kits are provided for the new inpatients every month.
CARE AND SUPPORT- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
3S link– Hospital project Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
Nutritional Counseling
| General, Family and the Nutritional Counseling
The general, family and the by the programme counselors and the proj-
ect coordinator has been well received by the patients and their relatives. Counsel-
ing is done to create awareness about HIV/ AIDS transmission, prevention, safe sex,
use of condoms even if both the partners are positive and stigma & discrimination.
| Hygiene Counseling
Hygine Counseling
CARE AND SUPPORT- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
3S link– Hospital project Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
Counseling Discussion
| Nutritional supplement
Nutrition is an integral component of care and support and ART can create ad-
ditional nutritional needs and constraints. Hence nutritional support is given to patients
during their stay in the hospital supplying 1/3 rd of the daily requirements in the form of
Pongal, dates Peanut bars and curds. Every patient receives one cup of pongal, 50 Gms
of dates or 2 pieces of groundnut bar and 200ml of curds. This provides 550 kales, 15-16
gems of protein 125 moms of calcium and 8 mom of iron.
The staff while distributing the powder counsels the patients on the importance
of taking the powder regularly and teaches simple recipes using the powder, and the
preparation methods are put up on the notice board.
The Red Cross counselors have a cooking demonstration class at 10.30 am to impress on
the patients the different recipes which can be made with the powder.
Nutritional Supplement
Protein Supplement
CARE AND SUPPORT- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
3S link– Hospital Project Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
Nutritional Counseling
| Cost effective locally available food
The Red Cross counselors are also demonstrating to the patients about the use of
sprouted legumes, grams and the different recipes using them. The patients seem to be in-
terested in these of recipes and the variety of items that can be made. Importance is given to
locally available and cost effective ingredients.The Project cost is about Rs.16 lakhs per year
Beneficiaries:
- Provides Nutritional support to forever one lakh HIV/AIDS inpatients in the
hospital every year.
- Provides 4800 Hygiene kits to newly admitted HIV/AIDS patients in the hospi-
tal every year.
- Provides Nutrition education and counseling to about 12000 inpatients & their
attendants per year
Nutrient Supplement
CARE AND SUPPORT- Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
3S link– Hospital project Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
1. Salem
2. Dharmapuri
3. Krishnagiri
4. Dhindugal
5. Coimbatore
6. Nilgiris
7. Thiruvannamalai
8. Namakkal
Beneficiaries
- Through mobile ICTC Vans, about 500 persons were identified as HIV positive
and referred to the hospitals
- About 55000 people were counseled on HIV/AIDS
- About 5000 people were referred to Government Hospitals, STI clinics and ICTC
Centers.
STIGMA Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
Creating Awareness
STIGMA
Awareness Campaign
Beneficiaries:
- HIV/AIDS awareness sessions conducted for about 500 HIV infected and
affected family members per year.
Krishnagiri is one among the 10 highly prevalent HIV district in Tamil Nadu,
according to a latest study by the National Aids Control Organization (NACO).
The 12 bedded community care centre in Krishnagiri was inaugurated in 2008 with facili-
ties to treat
1. Sexually Transmitted diseases
2. Treatment for Opportunistic infections
3. Provision of Anti Retroviral drugs
4. HIV-TB treatment
WAD Rally
STIGMA Towards Positive Initiatives and Indian Red Cross
Achievements Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
Most People Living with HIV in Krishnagiri avail free treatment at the IRCS care
centre which provides both inpatient and out patient services and short stay for PL-
HAs. HIV+ patients are treated for opportunistic infections as inpatients for about 15
days to one month. Services provided to PLHA during their stay include medical and
nursing care, nutrition and nutrition counseling, family counseling, yoga training and
psychological training. PLHA whose condition stabilizes are sent home to live with their
families and communities; others, in need of more medical care, are referred to medical
institutions.
The Project cost is Rs.20 lakhs per year.1165 treated as out patients and 282 treat-
ed as in patients till date , Supplementary Nutrition distributed to 472 PLHA patients
-1165 treated as
-282 PLHA treated as in patients
-Nutritional food for 472 PLHA patients
Awareness Campaign
Towards positive initiatives Towards positive and Indian Red Cross
and achievements Achievements - HIV /AIDS Tamil Nadu Branch
Report -2003-2009
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