HIVAIDS Portal/LearnShare HIVAIDS Africa/Workshop Proceedings/Day2

DAY 2 PROCEEDINGS
29th, April, 2008 – Amarc Africa Pan Africa Community Radio Conference, Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire

1.0 Welcome & Recap

 * 28 participants attended the second workshop.
 * 3 French speaking participants whose understanding and contribution to the discussions was facilitated through simultaneous translations by a bi- liqual participant.

Recap of Day 1
Recap of day 1 workshop on the principles of effective learning programmes. This was through a plenary session.

2.0 Panel discussions on HIV/AIDS treatment literacy
Four (4)participants from the HIV community participated in the panel discussions.

Some of the ideas expressed in the panel discussions include:


 * Adapting treatment literacy as a lifestyle
 * ART/ARV compliance and consistency
 * Positive healthy living
 * Respecting adherence
 * Positive attitudes, not patronising, in the care and support
 * Simplifying the technicalities and terminologies
 * Treatment as a form of prevention
 * Knowledge and understanding of the states of infection to prevent progression from HIV to AIDS
 * Positive and healthy living for those already infected that reduces the virus load, avoiding infecting others and re-infection.

2.1 Key messages on HIV/AIDS treatment literacy

 * 1) HIV/AIDS does not kill
 * 2) Treatment saves lives and improves community health
 * 3) Community has a key role to play in implementing and teaching HIV/AIDS treatment
 * 4) Treatment is a form of prevention

Key driving questions

 * 1) What are the learners’ needs?
 * 2) Who are the learners?
 * 3) What are your learning objectives?
 * 4) What resources do you have/need?
 * 5) What are the off –air elements?

3.1 Merging of Working Groups
Working Groups merged into four(4) main ones:
 * 1) Baako
 * 2) Umoja
 * 3) Change
 * 4) Gong Gong Beaters

They discussed the key driving questions in their groups.

A. BAAKO
Who are the learners?


 * People living with HIV/AIDS
 * Caregivers
 * Members of the community
 * Civil society
 * Relatives
 * Community media

Needs


 * Use friendly formatting
 * Community participation
 * Ethics
 * Accurate information
 * Skills
 * Sponsorship of radio sets
 * Relevant time slots for targeted audience
 * Involving learners
 * Involving stakeholders
 * Their voices to be heard
 * Learners right to education

Learning objectives


 * To learn from each one’s experiences
 * Increasing treatment literacy
 * To increase behaviour change from members of the community
 * To increase the number of learners through interesting programs
 * To be able to solve problems

Resources we have


 * Learners
 * Community groups/media
 * Civil society
 * Stakeholders

Off-Air elements


 * Listeners clubs
 * Drama
 * Community cinema
 * Community shows
 * Outside broadcasts

B. CHANGE
Learners’ needs


 * Identifying the symptoms
 * Self-testing procedure
 * Basic knowledge of HIV/AIDS
 * Access to drugs
 * Referral procedures
 * Tit-bits on healthy lifestyles
 * Testing results

Learners


 * People with HIV/AIDS
 * Close relatives/families
 * Broadcasts
 * Traditional healers
 * Health care providers
 * Children, youth, govt, agencies
 * Security agents

Learners’ Ojectives


 * Increase voluntary testing
 * Increase knowledge on referrals
 * Reduce rate of infection
 * Encourage support for PLWA
 * Reduce the rate of infection through knowledge sharing
 * Break stigma and discrimination

Resources


 * Broadcast staff
 * Producers, presenters, technicians
 * Topic/subject areas
 * Resource persons
 * Community radio station
 * Community members
 * Volunteers
 * Government policies on HIV/AIDS

C. UMOJA
How to carry out needs assessments on learners’ needs 


 * Vox pops
 * Questionnaires
 * Focus Group discussions
 * SMS
 * Phone-ins
 * Service providers

Learning objectives 


 * Promote the importance of adherence to treatment

Learning areas


 * Understanding medication
 * Support of family, friends and community
 * Role of service providers and Government
 * Healthy living
 * Role of spiritual and traditional leaders

Partners


 * Develop database
 * Initiate contact
 * Develop funding proposals

Program Format 
 * One (1) hour long program.


 * All programmes include PLWHA
 * Within a human rights based approach

D. GONG GONG BEATERS
The learners’ needs 
 * Know about treatment literacy
 * Audience understanding of HIV/AIDS
 * Accurate information
 * Know service provision centres
 * Skills

Learners’/Target groups


 * Local community members
 * Underprivileged
 * Low income earners who lack access to information
 * Medicine men
 * Opinion leaders

Objectives


 * To instil sense of understanding in the community on HIV/AIDS treatment
 * Stop and control new infections
 * Support the infected to live well and longer

Resources


 * Experts –professionals
 * Closer health facilities
 * Adequate HIV/AIDS literature
 * Civil society organisations
 * Opinion leaders

Off – air elements


 * Wheel barrow radio
 * Drama
 * Radio listener clubs
 * Narrow casting

Need
More and better learning programmes about HIV/ AIDS, especially treatment literacy, on local and community media.

Country/Regional action groups

 * South Africa
 * Kenya
 * Ghana
 * Zambia/Sierra Leone
 * Tanzania

GHANA
Goal
 * To accelerate voluntary counselling and testing

Time
 * 3 months (June - August 2009)

Target
 * 200 people are expected to visit AIDS facilities for voluntary counselling and testing

Strategies


 * Organise community shows to create awareness of the programme series
 * Seek community opinion on how and when programme should be broadcast e.g. days and time (Relevant on air time slot to target audience)
 * During the shows, the people should be let to claim ownership of the programme by naming the series i.e. participating in other relevant activities, programmes and scheduling
 * Seeking their opinion on type of characters they want to hear

Strengths


 * The community radio
 * Resource persons
 * Communication facilities
 * Sponsors –AMARC and CIDA
 * Government policy on HIV/AIDS data

Key actions to build


 * Research
 * Speak to experts
 * Include those who have gone for test and those who have not to tell their story
 * Engage community members in off- air activities like drama, debate, story-telling and play back experiences

Needs


 * Broad based information on the subject through research
 * First Aid box for field work
 * Transportation
 * Liaisons to link community and station
 * Camera
 * Recording and production equipment

ZAMBIA/ SIERRA LEONE
Zambia shall help Sierra Leone by informing on good practices that have worked on HIV treatment and literacy NGO’s, radio programmes, networking and sharing expertise

Strengths
 * Skills, knowledge, audience, media, IEC materials and HIV policies

Goals
 * Increase treatment, literacy to community through community media

Key actions to build
 * Capacity building, content development, production skills, partnerships, documentation skills, monitoring and evaluation

Needs
 * Finances, training, IEC materials, partnerships, equipment, situation analysis

Timelines
 * December 2011. Review dates- December 2010

4.2 Submitting Action Plans
4.2 The remaining groups will submit their country actions plans later. The groups will also continue sharing knowledge, information and expertise through the working groups and the online tools, especially the wiki educator and the list serve

4.3 Advantages of WikiEducator

 * Open & Distant Learning - self directed approach
 * Sharing of open resources
 * Information
 * Collaboration from different countries

4.4 Wiki Skills Training
Participants expressed the need for a wiki training course through on line facilitation and face to face workshops.

5.0 Workshop Evaluation
Participants filled forms which shall be processed and feedback be shared.