Visits to NGO's ( non-governmental organizations)

Monday, August 23rd was a treat in that we were picked up at 11:00 AM. After a run of early morning departures, this later morning pick-up allowed us to get on with some other activities including banking. Joslyn Walker, Communications Manager of NOAH (Nurturing Orphans of AIDS for Humanity) kindly picked us up to take us to their facility near Phoenix (a sub-division on the outskirts of Durban). There we met various colleagues who were looking after children of various ages. Their population of children has grown during the day with the teachers' strike and no school. The little ones with whom we interacted were three to five or six years old. As it happened, we ended up giving the children attention through play and then helping with the noon lunch. I think we were of help in giving the children some attention and providing help to the staff. The mission of NOAH is " Empowering communitites to care for their vulnerable children". Although they are currently providing food and care, they are rethinking their approach of providing direct care to one of facilitating such care. There are a number of such centers and the central staff work to making the centers independent of NOAH so that NOAH can help establish groups in other communities with vulvnerable children. The visit to Noah was made possible by Karen Krakowitzer,the CEO of NOAH, whom I met at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna

Tuesday, August 24th began with a pick-up by Zodwa Sithole, the Advocacy Manager of the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa who took us to Highway Hopsice. It was good to see Zodwa again. When we arrived at Highway Hospice, we were greeted by Karen Hinton, a nurse and an old friend from prior visits to Highway Hospice. I never cease to be amazed at how forward thinking the group at Highway Hospice is. We have so much to learn from them. Therafter Moosa, a nurse with Highway Hospice, took us to two facilities with whom Highway Hospice collaborates to various degrees. The first clinic was at a space at which Highway Hospice may establish a satellite clinic. At the second facility, we saw care being provided for orphans, and seriously ill people without caregivers. Both of the latter two facilities were in financially empoverished areas.

A lot of the discussion on both days was on the impact of the teachers and nurses' strike on those who are ill and needing care as well as on the school children. The effect on patients has been a dire impact in some cases. We heard of incubators being smashed after the babies had been transferred to other hospitals. We have not witnessed such events but in private converstaions, newspapers, and TV, the big news is the strike. It's a far cry from the national jubilation that was described for the time of the World Cup.
Hopefully, all will be resolved soon so that nurses have an appropriate salary and patients receive their care.

Inge