Our Challenges
Challenges for Women and Children
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Lack of finances to run programmes and projects.
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Increased raise in TB and HIV infections among women/PLHIV.
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Clients / patients do not receive adequate treatment, care and counselling/support services due to congestion in the health facility, at times due to stock out of drugs.
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Inadequate awareness creation resulting to low uptake of health care services among members of the society.
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Poor adherence among some clients receiving treatment, care and support services.
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Challenges in communication because we can’t reach the marginalized clients all over the catchment area. (Here we think we can cover 5 sub counties (Osukuru ,Malaba town council border, Tororo town centre, Eastern division and Western division where there is increased number of commercial sex workers due to new factories built around recently, long distance truck drivers who roam the area for days as they wait idly for the goods to be loaded/off loaded onto their trucks for transit.
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Gaps in enabling policies.
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Being marginalised stigmatised and discriminated against because they are widows.
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Children face challenges such as;
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Child headed homes as a result of AIDS orphans
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Poor nutrition leading to poor adherence to ARV drugs (Presently, there is extreme famine in the country but more specifically in the PLHIV homes where in some communities people have resorted t eating bitter leaves of trees for food.
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Orphans are left alone to live in very poor conditions and lack proper parental guidance.
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Rampant early marriages. (This is very serious and indeed common in our country and communities these days. Local FM radio stations read horrible news where majority young girls including babies of 2 to 5 years old are defiled)
TOFPHANET has spearheaded prevention activities:
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Especially through moonlight HCT and promoted adherence, positive living, self-awareness and self-esteem. This has generally reduced stigma and discrimination in the community, a big percentage of the community are aware of their HIV status, there is more awareness about prevention, care and treatment as reflected by community participation and level of support to PLHIV. ​
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Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) including Maternal Health.
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Strategies in this thematic area are aimed at addressing STI and Reproductive health Rights concerns such as safer sex, correct and consistent condom use, right to medication without discrimination and stigmatisation, Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission and Gender based violence in HIV/AIDS families. This is done through workshops, community meetings and community dialogues. Grooming support groups through age and gender based grouping. ​
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Advocacy for policy change on issues that impact on the lives of people living with HIV
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Participation and presentation of HIV/AIDS issues during district planning meetings, in monitoring and evaluation and giving feedback, lobbying during various foras, community interventions concerning PLHIVs. ​
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Community systems strengthening: TOFPHANET has trained PLHIV groups of advocates, peer counsellors and expert clients/ senior clients. These are critical resources at the community, district and local levels that look into critical gaps in health delivery, policy, programming and funding & support in addressing these gaps. ​
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Increasing access to quality SRHR and HIV services by PLHIV. Through health literacy campaigns, maternal health petitions, direct support to PLHIV through income generation projects, the lives of PLHIV have greatly improved.