Connecting communities in HIV/AIDS prevention and control in Nghe An

(Baonghean.vn) - On the morning of March 18, in Vinh city, the project "Connecting communities in HIV/AIDS prevention in the coastal provinces of the North" under the Center for Community Health Research and Development (abbreviated as COHED) in collaboration with the Center for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control of Nghe An province organized a workshop to reach consensus and implement the project.

Attending the workshop were Dr. Nguyen Xuan Hong - Deputy Director of Nghe An Department of Health, on the project side was Ms. Dao Thi Mai Hoa - Director of the Center for Community Health Research and Development (COHED); representatives of the Provincial Police, Department of Foreign Affairs and representatives of community-based groups and self-help groups in the province.

The project is funded by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (USAID), with a total amount of more than 40 billion VND, implemented from March 2015 to the end of 2017 in 3 provinces and cities, namely: Hai Phong, Quang Ninh and Nghe An, benefiting from the project. Nghe An alone has 4 districts and towns including: Tuong Duong, Quy Chau, Que Phong and Cua Lo town.

Overview of the workshop

The project targets: people who inject drugs who have not been tested for HIV in the past 6 months or do not know their HIV status; people with HIV who have not registered for outpatient treatment, have participated in treatment but dropped out of treatment, or do not comply with ARV treatment; female sex workers who inject drugs and have not been tested for HIV in the past 6 months; sexual partners of drug users and people with HIV.

At the same time, focus on rapid assessment to understand the current status of existing services, the gap between needs, reality and approaches appropriate to the capacity of participating organizations; Recruit and train a network of community support workers; reach out and communicate to raise awareness for project target groups; support subjects to access services through the referral system (system to support people testing and treating HIV).

In addition, the project also coordinates the provision of mobile testing services, providing services to track clients, refer them for treatment and continue treatment at ARV treatment facilities; assess organizational capacity and develop capacity building plans for community groups; train, supervise and support these groups based on actual needs, in line with the organization's strategy...

Quynh Trang - Thuy Hien

(Provincial Information and Education Center)