NACOSA
The National Aids Convention of South Africa (NACOSA) is a network of over 1,700 civil society organisations working together to turn the tide on HIV, AIDS and TB in the Southern Africa.
NACOSA promotes dialogue, builds capacity with accredited training, mentoring and technical assistance and channels resources to support service delivery on the ground, particularly among children and youth, women and girls.
We talked to Sophie Hobbs about their organisation and HIV, AIDS and TB.
South Africa is the country with the highest rate of HIV, AIDS in the world. Approximately, 7 millions of people are infected. On top of it, TB is the nation's leading cause of natural death as well. Whether you like it or not, you are infected or not, with those numbers, we are all affected, the economy, families, communities, children... we all suffer from it so " Desperate times call for desperate measures".
NACOSA was created out of the need to bring HIV, AIDS and TB communities together in order to educate the society and to build a bridge between health services, funding to the patients-community.
Throughout the time, seminars, conferences, debates, outreaches have be done to eradicate HIV and TB but still, numbers are increasing. Sophie said that many barriers are still to be broken such as stigmas in a way that infected people think that they have to hide themselves from the rest of the world, lack of knowledge, people don't know where to go exactly when something is wrong.
There is a free treatment for people with HIV or TB but prevention is the best option. Post Exposure Prophylactic (PEP) is the pill you can take if someone rapes you in order to prevent the contamination from HIV within 72 hours and Pre Exposure Prophylactic (PREP), if you are at risks of being exposed to HIV.
We should start to educate the community from a young age, the more knowledge you have, the more empowered you are to make positive, good and healthy decisions.
GET TESTED, WEAR CONDOMS and STAY SAFE
For more information contact:
Web: www.nacosa.org.za
Tel: 021 552 0804
By: Panphil Tshisumpa
NACOSA promotes dialogue, builds capacity with accredited training, mentoring and technical assistance and channels resources to support service delivery on the ground, particularly among children and youth, women and girls.
We talked to Sophie Hobbs about their organisation and HIV, AIDS and TB.
South Africa is the country with the highest rate of HIV, AIDS in the world. Approximately, 7 millions of people are infected. On top of it, TB is the nation's leading cause of natural death as well. Whether you like it or not, you are infected or not, with those numbers, we are all affected, the economy, families, communities, children... we all suffer from it so " Desperate times call for desperate measures".
NACOSA was created out of the need to bring HIV, AIDS and TB communities together in order to educate the society and to build a bridge between health services, funding to the patients-community.
Throughout the time, seminars, conferences, debates, outreaches have be done to eradicate HIV and TB but still, numbers are increasing. Sophie said that many barriers are still to be broken such as stigmas in a way that infected people think that they have to hide themselves from the rest of the world, lack of knowledge, people don't know where to go exactly when something is wrong.
There is a free treatment for people with HIV or TB but prevention is the best option. Post Exposure Prophylactic (PEP) is the pill you can take if someone rapes you in order to prevent the contamination from HIV within 72 hours and Pre Exposure Prophylactic (PREP), if you are at risks of being exposed to HIV.
We should start to educate the community from a young age, the more knowledge you have, the more empowered you are to make positive, good and healthy decisions.
GET TESTED, WEAR CONDOMS and STAY SAFE
For more information contact:
Web: www.nacosa.org.za
Tel: 021 552 0804
By: Panphil Tshisumpa
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