G.P. is an 18-year-old HIV+ girl currently working as a teen leader and a peer educator for
Baylor-Tanzania Mwanza clinic, a role she has had since January 2020. When she was 14 years old,
she was living with her aunt, who was her primary caretaker, and her uncle. Due to marital problems,
her aunt moved out of their home and didn’t return until two years later. G.P. was left alone during
that time with only occasional visits from her neighbors. During this time she did not have an adult or
caretaker to make sure she was taking her medications. She had a hard time remembering to take her
ART and show up to clinic appointments. Overall, she was struggling.
In June 2017, she had a high viral load of 261,648 copies/ml. After she received that unwanted result,
she had several adherence sessions with counselors and social workers at the COE. As time passed
she had several additional high viral load results, throughout 2018 and into 2019. In January 2019, she
told the COE team that she had not been taking her ART very often, which was contributing to her
many high viral load results.
Just a few months later she was enrolled in the Jitambue Club Program, and the COE team was able to contact her aunt, who was living far away in Geita, located on the other
side of Lake Victoria. Thankfully, her aunt responded and came with G.P. to all six sessions of the Jitambue Club Program. During the sessions,
G.P. had the opportunity to meet with other participants who shared their experiences, challenges and solutions. After graduating from the Jitambue Club Program in July 2019,
she checked her viral load and saw some improvement. She was very pleased with the results and promised to continue working on what she had learned in the Jitambue
sessions.
G.P. was interested in becoming a teen leader working in the Jitambue Club Program but first she had to meet the criteria of having good adherence, and of having an
undetectable viral load result (less than 1000 copies/ml). Finally, in September 2019, G.P. checked her viral load and had a result of 243 copies/ml. She was so excited to have
achieved her goal of a viral suppression. Now she is a role model to all current Jitambue participants who are struggling with adherence and having high viral loads. She supports
other adolescents during these sessions and in other adolescent clubs in the Lake Zone.
Testimonial #2
Diana is a 13-year-old girl diagnosed with HIV in August 2019. She was referred to the Baylor-
Tanzania Mbeya COE by a health care provider who was trained at the Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya
intensive pediatric HIV education program. This person recognized that Diana needed specialized
care.
Diana is the youngest child in her family. Her mother died when she was an infant and she was
raised by her father. Diana and her father live in a rural part of Mbeya, which is almost 50 km from
Mbeya town center, and their home is isolated from the rest of the community. She and her father
live together in a single- room grass thatched hut with poor ventilation. They do not have a toilet
and must go to the bathroom in the bushes. There is no clean water nearby and sometimes, they
are not able to eat three meals a day. Even though Diana was sick, she still helped doing house
chores and caring for hersel
In August 2018, Diana began getting sick. Her father tried to get medical care for her, visiting both traditional healers and other medical facilities, even though it was expensive
for him to take Diana to these clinics. Eventually, he took her to a health clinic where she met a healthcare worker who tested her for HIV. After she was found to be HIV+ with
many complications, she was referred to the Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya COE for care.
Diana was very sick when she arrived at Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya. She had severe malnutrition and only weighed 15 kg. Her CD4 count was 0 cells/mm3, and she had persistent
diarrhea and oral sores. She was also evaluated by the social worker who saw that Diana was not attending school and that her father had given up hope that she would survive.
The Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya multidisciplinary team joined e orts to help Diana. She started anti-retroviral medications and received treatment for her diarrhea and malnutrition.
The social work department was able to give her family food support and clothing through the Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya COE’s donation program. The Baylor-Tanzania Mbeya COE’s
“Back to School” program worked diligently to help Diana return to school by helping her family navigate the complex educational system to re-enroll Diana and by providing her
with school uniforms and books.
She had regular home visits so healthcare workers could see how Diana and her father were coping at home. Diana’s father received psychosocial support to help him cope
with caring for Diana and her complex medical needs. She is now doing much better. She is taking her medicines well, weighs 25 kg and her CD4 is up to 214 cells/mm3! Diana
has returned to life and really appreciates the e orts of the Baylor- Tanzania Mbeya team. In the coming months, the Baylor-Tanzania team will continue to support Diana and
her family through home visits, school materials and food support. The Baylor-Tanzania team was also able to help Diana’s father with home gardening materials which will help
provide them with food and income. And in the future, the Baylor-Tanzania team would love to help support the renovation of Diana and her father’s home to install proper
sanitation.
Just a few months later she was enrolled in the Jitambue Club Program, and the COE team was able to contact her aunt, who was living far away in Geita, located on the other
side of Lake Victoria. Thankfully, her aunt responded and came with G.P. to all six sessions of the Jitambue Club Program. During the sessions,
G.P. had the opportunity to meet with other participants who shared their experiences, challenges and solutions. After graduating from the Jitambue Club Program in July 2019,
she checked her viral load and saw some improvement. She was very pleased with the results and promised to continue working on what she had learned in the Jitambue
sessions.
G.P. was interested in becoming a teen leader working in the Jitambue Club Program but first she had to meet the criteria of having good adherence, and of having an
undetectable viral load result (less than 1000 copies/ml). Finally, in September 2019, G.P. checked her viral load and had a result of 243 copies/ml. She was so excited to have
achieved her goal of a viral suppression. Now she is a role model to all current Jitambue participants who are struggling with adherence and having high viral loads. She supports
other adolescents during these sessions and in other adolescent clubs in the Lake Zone.
