St. Anne's

St. Anne's is an HIV ward in a small rural hospital. I was able to spend two days observing the impact that HIV has on South Africa. The first day I spent at PMTCT (preventing mother to child transmissoin.) Mothers with HIV came with their new borns and tried to keep them HIV negative. Fortunately, with the use of dual therapy (nevaprine and AZT) mother's have a 96% chance of keeping their child HIV free.
Breast feeding is a huge issue at this clinic. The decision is always whether to do it or not and do the risks out weigh the benefits. Every mother wants to breast feed her child, but if she is positive, she can still transmit the virus to her baby. If a mother chooses to breast feed, she must breast feed only, no mixing. One mother breast feed her child up to 6 months then started mixing food and breast milk. This scratches the lining of the child's stomach and allows the virus to enter the child's body. Her child is most likely now HIV positive. That is why most mothers choose to use formula. But again, if they don't' have a clean water supply or support from family or means of accessing the formula, the child is again at risk of contracting the virus. This clinic was an eye opening experience to see how Africa is affected by HIV epidemic.
The next day I spent in the ARV(anti retro viral) clinic and just saw patients who needed to receive them. ARV's are free, patients have access to all the supplies they need. As great as this may seem, most patients skip doses or fail to give them to their children. Some mothers often try to cheat the nurse by hiding pills in their purse so they don't get in trouble and will be able to receive their next months dose. It was also interesting that only women come to the clinic. Men still are in denial about having the virus and hardly any seek ARV treatment for HIV.