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A Quarterly Newsletter from

UPDATES AND ACTIVITIES OF THE GFATM RCC II PPTCT PROGRAM

OCTOBER 2014-MARCH 2015

Living with HIV

I N

T H I S

I S S U E

There is a saying that a life lived in fear is a life half lived. In other words, fear is half-death.
Any deadly disease is not as deadly as the fear caused by it. It can alter a persons faith in
the possible solution or cure. It can affect a persons hope; his/her desire to live itself.
HIV related co-infections are indeed dangerous. But what the society has made of it is very

Living with HIV

tragic. Though it is not an end in itself, the societal pressure makes the person to see it as
the end of all hopes. When all diseases are looked upon with compassion and empathy,

HIV and other related co-infections to it are looked upon with contempt. People are less
concerned about the health of the patient but more interested in his/her morality. And in
the Indian scenario, morality weighs more than the individual. It is saddening that though

States Snapshots
3

everyone knows the cause of the disease, very few know anything more about the disease
itself. In a situation like this, any victim of HIV can soon lose hope and confidence to lead a

States Coverage

good life in the society. More often than not, the patient also shares the same ignorance
4

and prejudice about the disease. Hence it becomes difficult for them to see dignity in their
From The Fields: Gujarat

lives.
As people working for this cause, it should be our mission to create awareness and allay all

sorts of misconceptions and prejudices towards HIV and AIDS. The patients need to be
given hope and encouragement to lead their lives with dignity and strive towards curbing
the infections.

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

From The Fields: Manipur

WORLD AIDS DAY RALLY 2014

NGO ASHA Jyothi in Andhra Pradesh

NGO Lodi Multipurpose Social Service Society in

Andhra Pradesh

NGO Nature in Andhra Pradesh

NGO Gramin Pradyogik Vikas Sansthan in Bihar

NGO Raja Foundation in Andhra Pradesh

NGO Sevadham Trust in Maharashtra

NGO Mooknayak Sansthan in Maharashtra

NGO Social Activities Integration in Mumbai

NGO Vijay Krida Mandal in Mumbai

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

States Snapshots

PHMMS Training in Nagaland in October 2014

PHMMS Training in Mizoram in October 2014

I am suffering from numbness of hand &

find it very difficult to work with and also
my health is not well. I, still,am carrying
on this activity with full vigour and spirit. I
render this service for the well being of
the poor & weaker section of the society
suffering from deadly decease. I wish that
God may give me sufficient strength to
carry on this activity in future too very
effectively

-ORW, Mumbai

ANC Health Check up camp in Bihar

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

The above image shows an appreciation note

from Gujarat State AIDS control Society on the
high quality outreach services provided for
PPTCT by IL&FS in Gujarat

Foundation Day Celebration of SAI NGO in

Mumbai

PPTCT Training in Bihar in November 2014

We value the tremendous efforts of the

State Co-ordinators and Outreach Workers
for implementing PPTCT Program in the
state.The technological innovation bought
in by IL&FS ETS in terms of mobile reporting
is not only a boon in terms of data accuracy
and analysis but also has empowered the
ORWs towards transparency, accuracy and
follow-up.The training quality was par
excellence which has made the outreach
technically competent to operate in adverse
situations in the field
-Dr. Rajendra Gadhavi, JD-BSD, Gujarat
State AIDS Control Society (GSACS)

Anti Leprosy Day Celebration by Mariyanilayam Social

Service Society in Andhra Pradesh

PPTCT Review Meeting for the Global Fund

The Annual Review Meeting of the PPTCT program took place in

Cochin, Kerala from January 21st-24th, 2015.The participants
included all the key members from the Central and State teams. The
meeting was held with a view to analyze and review the state specific
performance and to discuss the impact of the project. Achievements
of each state were presented and key action items were noted. The
discussions that followed further revealed that the State
Coordinators have engaged themselves into the project for bringing
quality service to the program. As the meeting drew to a close, it was
made clear to all the participants that the success of the program lies
in widening our reach and making an impact in the society.

States Coverage as on 31

24
States

252
Districts

166
NGOs

S
No
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

State
Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Chhattisgarh
Delhi
Gujarat
Himachal Pradesh
Jharkhand
Kerala
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Manipur
Mizoram
Mumbai
Nagaland
Odisha
Puducherry
Punjab
Rajasthan
Tamil Nadu
Tripura
Uttar Pradesh
Uttarakhand
West Bengal
TOTAL

s t

March 2015
Districts
23
3
11
5
9
32
2
7
6
10
33
9
7
1
7
10
2
4
8
32
3
11
2
15
252

NGOs
31
2
3
4
1
1
1
1
1
2
32
17
3
7
7
2
1
2
1
32
1
9
2
3
166

ORWs
600
19
63
24
15
132
5
20
17
30
513
104
33
134
44
50
6
20
25
391
4
57
11
61
2,378

District
Coordinators
39
2
9
4
2
16
1
3
3
4
38
18*
3
18
7
7
1
3
4
41
1
10
2
6
242

*At present, there are 18 counselors working in Manipur apart from the above mentioned workforce.

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

From The Fields

G U J A R A T
One day when our Outreach Worker (ORW) went to the field visit to refer general ANCs for HIV testing, she met
Lilavati Rajput (Name Changed) who was 5 months pregnant and has not been tested for HIV yet. Lilavati had come
from Bhind, Madhya Pradesh with her husband for labour work in Ahmedabad. She did not know about any
Government programs for ANC women. ORW explained her in detail regarding various programs offered by
Government of Gujarat and also explained about HIV.
Lilavati was tested for HIV and was detected positive at Shardaben Hospital in Ahmedabad. ORW and counsellor
made her understand that with the help of Anti-retroviral Therapy (ART) medicine, she could lead a healthy life and
proper treatment could also prevent her child from HIV. She was enrolled in PPTCT program in July 2014. She was
very brave lady and she persuaded her husband for HIV testing. Her husband was also detected HIV positive.
After 3 months, her parents came to Ahmedabad to take her back to Bhind, Madhya Pradesh for her delivery. She
explained them about the condition and asked if she could stay back for her treatment and deliver her child in
Ahmedabad. But her parents denied and took her to Bhind so that they could take better care of her. We advised
her for Government institution delivery and gave medicine for 2 months.
She went to Madhya Pradesh but we were in constant touch with her. Once when I called her for follow up, she was
in ambulance as she was having her labor pain. She delivered her baby on November 20, 2014. I suggested her to
visit government hospital instead of going back to home so that she and her baby would be better taken care of.
Next day morning I had a call from her father that the hospital staff was not taking proper care and baby was also
not given any Nevirapine (NVP) syrup. I spoke to nursing staff of the ward and asked her to connect me to the ART
centre. ART counsellor told me that the patient came at night and they had only 2 bottles of NVP syrup and that too
for their regular patients, so they could not give the same to this patient. I strictly told them to give proper
treatment to both mother and baby and warned them that I would complaint to Gwalior ART medical officer. The
next day they gave one bottle of Nevirapine to the family member of Lilavati.
But unfortunately, at the time of discharge, bottle of nevirapine got damaged by Lilavatis family member. I came to
know about this incident when I again called her for follow up. I spoke to the ART center and asked about any
possibility of another NVP syrup bottle.
GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

But they didnt have any Nevirapine syrup bottle and asked me to procure from Gwalior ART center. I called Lilavati
and asked her father to go to Gwalior. As Gwalior was 80 KMs from Bhind, he could not go there. I tried other options
also but none of them worked .Then I urgently contacted Mansingh, Lilavatis husband who was in Ahmedabad. I
explained him the urgency and told that he had to go to MP the next day. He readily agreed and left for MP the next
day with 2 bottles of Nevirapine provided by us. Finally the child got nevirapine and we were happy with satisfaction
that we could help the child at the right time. I am very glad that with our constant efforts, both mother and child are
healthy today.
Jitendra Singh, District Coordinator, Ahmedabad & Gandhinagar

M A N I P U R
Mrs. Meena(Name changed) is a 20 yrs old divorcee from a large family who currently resides in Churachandpur
town in Manipur. She conceived out of wedlock and was shocked when during a routine pregnancy check-up
she was detected HIV positive.
Mrs. Meena did not have the strength to reveal her status to the father of her baby, her family members or her
friends. She had to undergo the trauma alone. She decided to go for Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) as
she was not yet married. However after thorough counselling and support given by PPTCT staff, she managed to
bring in the father of her baby for counselling. He was tested and found to be negative. Fortunately, he affirmed
his commitment to marry her and Meena also decided to carry on with her pregnancy.
Meena received regular counselling through home visits and at the ART centre. She started opening up slowly
after regular counselling and began to disclose about her status to her family. She gave birth to a healthy baby
girl at District Hospital through normal delivery. NVP was administered to both mother and baby. She opted for
top feeding.
Meena has slowly changed her attitude about managing life with HIV. She has gradually started realising that
there are lots of other people who are living with HIV and that she is not alone. She is enrolled in different
project of the organization and has begun to regularly attend the support group meetings held by the PPTCT
programme.

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

M A N I P U R

I am Maria (Name changed) living in Kangpokpi town of Manipur. My husband and I lived a very happy
married life. I am HIV positive and my husband is negative. Ours was a love marriage. I first came to know
about my HIV status during pregnancy, while on the verge of delivery. As I was tested positive, my husband
was also made to test but found negative. But we being a discordant couple, never got a problem in our
married life. My husband and in-laws take good care of me. Initially, my status was not revealed to anyone
due to fear. My first son was delivered without any intervention and when he completed 18 months, he was
tested for HIV and was found to be positive. After doing the necessary investigations, my child was initiated
Anti retroviral therapy (ART) in Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital (JNIMS). During
second pregnancy, I came across an NGO called RDA (Rural Development Association) and I was made to
undergo regular ANC check-up with the assistance of ORW of RDA. My second son was delivered at
Community Health Centre (CHC) Kangpokpi with PPTCT intervention by the RDA staff. I took Nevirapine (NVP)
tablet during labour pain and my son was provided with NVP syrup after few hours of delivery. My second
and third children are both born under PPTCT intervention by the NGO, RDA. Both the children were given
replacement feeding and till now they were all tested negative. My eldest son who is positive is 9 years and
second and third sons are 6 years and 3 years respectively.
Despite of being positive and my husband still negative, we are living a normal life, I was never questioned by
my in-laws or husband under any circumstances. My only problem is that my first son is positive. We were
not able to save him due to my fear of people knowing my status. I feel that I could have saved my first son if
I had met the staffs of RDA before.
Both my first son and I are undergoing ART treatment without having any problems. I am living with HIV for
the last ten years and with ART and I am able to live a normal life. My husband takes very good care of me.
He is always concerned about my medication and medical check-ups. Though I am HIV, I am lucky to have
been blessed with this family.

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

Started in 1997 as Schoolnet, IL&FS Education and Technology Services Limited (IL&FS Education) is the Social
Infrastructure arm of IL&FS group. Leveraging our corporate strength we manage large scale programmes focused on
Education, Skill Development, Healthcare and Cluster Development in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode.
Through our work we are not only stimulating the education and skilling space but also working with small and medium
enterprises to create jobs. We follow a holistic development approach to ensure that the impact our work creates is
long term and sustainable. This model has been recognised by McKinsey & Company as one of the top two initiatives
aimed at faster and inclusive growth.
Currently, we work with more than 10 Central and 25 State Government departments, Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs),
Multi-National Agencies and other Private companies as a partner in their social development goals.

Contact Us
Mr. Arvindd Narayanan
Practice Head,
Health Initiatives
IL&FS Education & Technology Services Ltd
Email: arvindd.narayanan@ilfsindia.com
Tel: 0120-2459200
Corporate Office
NTBCL Building, Toll Plaza,
DND Flyway,
Noida 201301
Tel: 120-2459 200

GFATM PPTCT NEWSLETTER

Connect with Us
Dr. Arun Varma
Group Head,
Health Initiatives
IL&FS Education & Technology Services Ltd
Email: arun.varma@ilfsindia.com

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