Cambodia - HIV / AIDS Homecare
Death stalks a country
Even as you read this, AIDS is taking the lives of men, women
and children in Cambodia - leaving behind broken hearted
families and vulnerable orphans. Disturbingly, the
heartbreak and horror of AIDS is hitting Cambodia at a faster
rate than any other country in Asia. Cambodia will never
be the same. AIDS is wiping out a generation and leaving
thousands of orphans. Yet there is hope...
For a number of years, Servants has been successfully
challenging Cambodian communities to change dangerous
behaviour and reach out to those who are suffering. A
number of Cambodian volunteers are now joining hands with us
in the peaceful fight against this merciless killer. But
the battle continues.
Real people suffering
Behind every AIDS statistic is a real person with a real
family. This is the basis for our response to the AIDS
crisis. Overstretched Government hospital facilities
have buckled under the avalanche of need and so Servants helps
support AIDS patients in their homes and communities rather
than in an institutional or hospital setting.
Recognising the devastating impact of finding out you are HIV
positive - we provide both pre-test and post-test counselling
for people who suspect they may be HIV positive. The
stigma and rejection can be a heavy burden to bear on top of
the horrible knowledge that you will leave your children
orphans.
Mobilising the community
In response to the huge scale of the AIDS crisis and the sheer
numbers of people in our program Servants has mobilised
compassionate people in each community to be our hands and
feet in ministering to the sick. These community workers
help provide the day to day care and encouragement that the
patients would otherwise lack. A survey of patients in
our program revealed that the Servants community workers are
often the only visitors they get and many patients claimed
they would have lost hope long ago without their encouragement
and love.
The community workers are usually recruited from local
churches and are trained in basic nursing skills, health and
hygiene. They meet weekly for mutual support, debriefing
and ongoing training. Servants medical staff take care
of the more advanced stages of AIDS and provide medical
backup.
AIDS attacks the whole family
When one or more parents contracts AIDS it has a devastating
effect on the whole family. Often it is the main breadwinner
who is sick and unable to work, leaving the family struggling
to survive. Studies have shown that in many families,
children have to leave school to care for their parents or
earn an income. Servants provides practical assistance
in cases of extreme hardship, such as rice, clothing and
money. Children are also referred to Project HALO as
soon as their parents are identified as HIV positive.
This is a discouraging work, with few rewards. However,
there is some light in the darkness - we see it in the gutsy
perseverance of the patients and their families, and we see it
in the tireless love and compassion shown by our community
workers.
How can you help?
Contact Servants Cambodia (cambodia@servantsasia.org) to find out how you can help
