Celebrating Service Providers in Pediatric HIV/AIDS Care
Dr. Sandrine Ngeh, Major Vera Veyee, Tita Passy, and Ngum Claudette of the Regional Hospital Bamenda’s Treatment Center, are partners of the CBC Health Services’ Children Momentum Project. They are some of the valiant service providers who fight day and night to ensure children living with HIV live long and fruitful lives. They and their colleagues ensure that every child brought in has the necessary care and treatment required, saving lives through follow-up and providing consistent and intentional psychosocial support to them and their caregivers. They also organize separate support groups for these children and their parents. These support groups have different sessions for children living with HIV of different age groups and the Parent Forum, for parents and caregivers of these children.
Organised as teaching and interactive forums, the participants find mutual support, assistance, and solutions to most of their problems. The discussions usually vary and range from adherence to medication, to psychosocial support, and sexual and reproductive health etc. The essence is for the children living with HIV and their caregivers to find solace and obtain the right information and perspectives.
In one of such sessions recently, the discussions were centered on Sexual and Reproductive Health and the HPV vaccine which prevents cervical cancer. These vaccines free for children 9 to 14 years can be given to every child whether living with HIV or not. The caregivers were encouraged to get their children vaccinated and to engage discussions about sexuality and reproductive health early before they are filled with wrong information from external influencers.
One mother, at the end of the session testified to the importance of these support groups, and the impact they have on the general mental health of her family. These support groups are also possible, thanks to support and financial assistance from the Children Momentum Project with funding from ViiV Healthcare.
These service providers at the Bamenda Regional Hospital represent the many others in different national and CBC healthcare facilities, who work closely with the CBC Health Services’ Children Momentum Project, to actively engage in pediatric HIV care and treatment in the Northwest region.
