The recent surge in suicide in Nigeria is an indicator that mental health should be a priority.
Sadly, when people voice out their desires to commit suicide especially on social media, most people encourage them to go ahead with the suicide.
You should know that when someone expresses thoughts of suicide, it is not the time to be sarcastic or ironic. It is up to you to help talk that person out of suicide. Below are tips to do so:
Encourage the person to seek treatment.
Point such a person in the right direction. Link him or her up with mental health experts and doctors. It is not your place to serve as a mental health professional but you may offer advice and support. If he or she is skeptical about health experts, encourage them to talk to a trusted person, teacher or family.
Be respectful and acknowledge the person’s feelings.
Do not express shock or annoyance. Rather, acknowledge the person’s feelings and be respectful. If you are not respectful, the person can withdraw and eventually it will cause a shutdown in communication.
Encourage the person to communicate with you.
Someone who is suicidal is probably feeling ashamed and embarrassed and may lean towards keeping mute. Encourage the person to talk with you by giving him or her rapt attention without interrupting. Never ever pass the blame on the person as the person may already be struggling with guilt.
Do not be judgmental.
Statements like “Things could have been worse” or “You should be grateful” or “your situation is better than mine” are very wrong. Rather, ask questions like, “What’s causing you to feel so bad?” “What would make you feel better?” or “How can I help?” Forget about your own problems and be supportive.
Offer reassurance that things can get better.
When someone is suicidal, what they believe is that nothing can get better. So this is the time to reassure the person that with appropriate treatment, he or she can develop other ways to feel better about life again.
Never keep someone’s suicidal feelings a secret.
Be understanding but share with appropriate relations and persons what is going on. You absolutely have to get help especially if you think the person’s life is in danger.
Remove potentially dangerous items.
Make sure the person is not surrounded with items that could be used for suicide — such as knives, razors, guns, ropes, insecticide or drugs. If the person takes a medication that could be used for overdose, encourage him or her to have someone safeguard it and give it as prescribed.
No public health value keeping HIV positive kids from learning- UN
Nigeria’s HIV epidemic affects all population groups and geographic areas of the country. Consequently, February 2015, the Federal Government signed into law the HIV/AIDS anti-discrimination bill to protect the rights and dignity of people living with HIV. Thus, making it illegal to discriminate against people based on their HIV status.
In this fifth and concluding part of the investigative series across seven states in Nigeria- Ogun, Lagos, Edo, Delta, Imo, Benue and the FCT Abuja, TOBORE OVUORIE, in her diary-like session, narrates traumatic experiences of children of school age living with HIV. She travels with these kids- back and forth- different phases of their lives full of discrimination, stigmatization, shaming and isolation by the society. The investigation also discloses how kids living with the virus are denied their human rights to educational opportunities.
THE STORY’S ARRIVAL
It all began sometime in February 2018 when I pitched a story; this story actually, to the Code For Africa. I was to decide everything editorial. The states to be combined and those to go independent in the publications. Code For Africa, as a policy, has no control whatever over editorials.
My-colleague-turned-to-friend-and-sister, Vanessa Offiong of Daily Trust Newspaper, had introduced me to the group. So, I confided in her. She warned me not to go to any school around where I live.
“Don’t even go to a school within the jurisdiction where you live. Tobore, we are Nigerians. The news will spread so fast that your kids have HIV. You don’t want to start hunting for a new apartment because your landlord won’t understand.”
The story?
I was to move around as many schools as possible, across seven states, on a simple mission: to find out if the school authorities will grant my kids admission without any form of biases because of their health status.
What about their health status?
They are supposedly living with HIV.
Yes! The Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
“MY MUMMY SAID I SHOULD NOT PLAY WITH YOU AGAIN BECAUSE YOU ARE DANGEROUS. I WILL DIE IF I DO.”
“My mummy said I should not play with you again.” Mimidoo’s head was bowed. Mivaaga sat arm-to-arm with her. She rubbed Mimidoo’s back with her left hand.
“Why did her mum tell her that?”
No response. Didn’t raise her head either. Mivaaga gave me what I needed. “That we are dangerous.”
I sighed. Deeply.
“That she will die if she comes close to us.” Mimidoo raised her head but staring at something invisible in the air. She was yet pained though it happened eight years ago.
I had known it would be very emotional taking these 13 year old girls back to when they were five years old. But I never expected this. Dissociation. She was there physically, her eyes wide open but had left Mivaaga and I.
I stopped the interview.
I stood up, walked across from where I was seated in the living room, went on my knees and arranged her legs together with her feet firmly on the ground. And placed her palms on her thighs. Mivaaga continued rubbing her back with her palm. This time, had slid it under Mimidoo’s blouse.
I gently called her name to see if she could hear me. She was still staring at the unseen stuff in the air. Lips sealed. I told her she is safe. No one can shame or bully her anymore. And what happened is not her fault. The persons who shamed them are the ones to cover their faces in shame. Not her. Not her sister.
Some minutes later, her fingers started moving as I kept talking gently to her. Their mother all the while had returned to the living room and sat beside her. I had made signs with my hands that she should not hold her yet. Goose pimples had taken over Mimidoo’s body. And tears began the stroll down her very pretty oval chocolate-colored face. Two whitish snakes at unequal intervals, possibly looked to the left and right, to ensure they were safe, then started crawling out of her nostrils.
“This is part of what I have been going through,” their mum looked very sad.
“She is having flashbacks,” I whispered.
“What’s that?” Mrs. Betty Terfa asked.
“She is remembering the terrible experiences but as if they are happening now.”
“You are a doctor?” the twin’s mother was now curious. She knew me to be a reporter.
“No.” I took my eyes off Mimidoo and focused them on Mrs. Terfa.
MRS TERFA
Our eyes jammed. She didn’t take hers away. I did. Gave them to Mimidoo, again.
“In 2014 I struggled too. Badly. I was shipped away to America. That is where social health workers and other medical caregivers taught me these. And a lot more.”
“They (people) told you bad things too?” Mivaaga found her voice. Though shaky and had lost its jingles.
“Yes. They did. But I don’t permit them anymore.”
“How do you do it?” Mivaaga was becoming curious.
“Now, I end any discussion that is not good for my health. It doesn’t matter who the other person is. I create distance with people who affect me negatively. I now create boundaries and let such people know what I will take and what I won’t ever tolerate.”
“And they worked for you?” Their mum too was curious.
“Yes. They have. Now, my mind is at rest and I feel very confident again like I used to be.”
“Please, can you teach the girls?”
“Of course. Today, I will teach them some grounding techniques and other coping mechanisms.”
“You are not doing the interview again?”
“I can’t continue today.”
“But, you came all the way from Lagos for it?”
“I know. But the health and safety of whoever I am interviewing is crucial to me. I must never re-traumatize anyone who has survived difficult experiences. My conscience won’t let me. Especially as I have been there before and know how it feels.”
“Hmmmn.” Mrs. Terfa sighed deeply.
“Yes. Rather, I help such persons.”
“Ok.” She was staring at me, so didn’t notice when Mimidoo returned to us.
I pulled a white plastic chair idling away in a corner. Sat opposite the girls and started putting them through breathing exercises.
“Gently take a deep breath. Hold it while I count one to 20.”
They did.
“Now, gradually breath out.”
They did. Their mum joined us. I continued at it for over 15 minutes before moving onto other coping skills.
Though the interview was canceled, I didn’t consider my first workday in Makurdi, Benue state, a waste.
…
“CAN’T ADMIT HIV POSITIVE KIDS IN THIS SCHOOL. WE HAVE A STANDARD. WE ALWAYS KEEP IT. WE MUST MAINTAIN IT…!”
I had spent over five minutes going through the school fees breakdown for Famous Group of Schools, Okpaka, Warri in Delta state. I had lamented bitterly that the N30,000 slated for just books for primary one is quite exorbitant.
Mr. Eli the school administrator, kept repeating theirs is a standard school. “Look at the facilities we have here…Education is the best legacy you can give to your kids…” he reeled with a sort of plastic foreign accent.
I had developed enough shock absorber when he gave me the breakdown for primary three. It was for my supposed son.
Then, I went on to tell him there was something more I needed to share but didn’t know if it would be sort of a challenge for the school. “One of them is HIV positive,” I calmly announced.
Mr. Eli screamed. The ‘W-H-A-T!?” sounded like a puppy learning how to bark but something in its throat stifling the outpouring.
He immediately regained himself. Recovered his foreign accent. Then apologized. “Oh. Sorry. Emmm…”
I continued like nothing happened. “The one in primary two. So, hope you people don’t mind.”
Mr. Eli interjected. “Wait. The one you talk about in primary two is…?”
“Yeah,” I filled the blank space.
“Did I hear you clearly again?”
“Yeah. So, hope you guys don’t mind admitting the child in school.”
“Emm. Ok. Emmm. Emmm. Emmm.” He kept repeating the “emmm.” Then continued “This is emmmm, emmmm, emmmmm. This is emmmmm, emmmm. Emmmm. Emmmm. You know, emmmm. Ok.”
He tried to recover from the shock, I think, of meeting the mother of a HIV positive kid. Then asked “how old is the child?
“Six years,” I answered.
“Ok. Ok. Ok. Ok. Emmm. It’s a, it’s a, it’s a, you know, these things are, wow! Oh gawd (God). Ok. I will put it this way.”
He paused for some seconds. It seemed like forever to me.
Then he continued. “How about the one, the seven?”
“No. That one is not (HIV positive).”
“Ok. It’s just the,” we both chorused “the one in primary two.”
“Ok. Alright. Alright. So, this is what I’m going to tell you. Emmm. We always seek the best and at the same time, like I told you, we have a standard, and that standard, we always like to keep. And we have to maintain it.”
He reeled on “It’s not us. It’s about people who have their children here. I welcome this child if it’s to be my decision to make. I will like to have this child be a part, you know, but the issue here are the guardians; parents, you know, with their peer groups, if they come to find out, it can escalate.”
I already knew where he was headed but allowed him reel on.
“And we would not want to put the child in that kind of risk. To us, it’s a risk. And it’s a risk to the child. And it’s also a risk to us because we have all the children. And parents don’t want to hear such a thing. Hope you are getting my picture.”
“Yeah, I am getting it,” I answered though I was actually confused.
“I welcome her. But this reason, you know, it is well. It is well. For the other child of three, class three, I think, that one is welcome. I don’t know, for this child,”
“So, that means we have to bring only the one for primary three.” It was a statement. Not a question. I helped him hit the nail.
“That would be fine. That’s fine. That’s fine by us.”
I sighed.
“It’s just emmm, you know, it’s glorious! This is wonderful! Emmmm. Like I said, we don’t want to put the child in some certain level, and they are still children. It’s different. I hope you understand that.”
I stressed my ok.
“Right then,” he continued.
I told him I would keep in touch and thanked him while he stressed the “you are welcome.” He allowed me go with the school fees breakdown. But before leaving, he asked for my name.
“Ok. I’m Rachael.”
Then he told me he is Mr. Eli. And kept repeating “you are welcome.” He was yet to recover fully from the shock, I guess.
He gave me his card and said I can always phone him anytime.
Mr and Mrs Terfa and their daughters used to live in a neighborhood very close to the Petroleum Training Institute, Warri. Her husband, a businessman, traveled often. So, she felt it was better and safer her twin girls schooled very close to home.
So, one day in the month of July 2010, she went school-hunting for the girls who were about clocking age five. And she found a very beautiful one close by. But, exactly what befell me with Mr. Eli happened to her. Although my experience with Mr. Eli happened at Warri in Delta state, I reserved it for this phase of the story because of Mrs. Terfa’s experience. And they both occurred in the same state.
“Why did you inform the school?” I asked with my eyes searching her face and eyes for more.
“Because I felt it was the right thing to do. They used to experience so much discomfort after taking their drugs. I was afraid they wouldn’t be at school during hospital visits and their teacher will notice all these. So, I decided to open up.”
Mrs. Terfa narrated how the school proprietor shouted ‘J-E-S-U-S!’ Then told her he couldn’t admit the girls anymore for it was risky for the school.
“So, what did you do?” I asked, with fatigue suddenly taking over my body.
“I went home and cried.”
“Why?” I had slid my right hand into my bag which was on the floor by my side, brought out one of the tough-balls and applied much pressure while holding it jealously. A coping mechanism to keep me grounded.
“The proprietor looked at me in this demeaning way. He judged me. His face and eyes accused me of being sexually irresponsible. It was all over him. He blamed me.”
She was still visibly shaken eight years later.
I stood up, walked across to her side of the living room and paused my recorder that was on the center table. Then handed her some tissue paper. I bought a dozen of them while packing my bags for the trip. From personal experiences of traveling to difficult pasts during (medical) sessions, I knew the tissue papers would be very important during all interviews with persons living with the virus.
While blowing her nose and wiping tears from her eyes, I poured some drinking water but added much quantity of the glucose I came with into it. I was doing exactly what one of my caregivers did during those emotional sessions back in the United States. I handed her the water. “She would be needing so much energy to go through this,” I told myself silently.
…
HIV: BENUE STATE, NIGERIA AND THE WORLD
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) says Benue is one of the six leading states in Nigeria which account for 41 percent of people living with HIV in the country. These states include: Kaduna, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Lagos, Oyo, and Kano. HIV prevalence is highest in the South-South with 5.5 percent and lowest in the South-East with a prevalence of 1.8 percent. Rural areas have higher prevalence rates with four percent, while urban strive with three percent prevalence rate.
The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and UNAIDS in a joint 2017 Spectrum Estimates indicates Benue state as one of the priority states in the fast tracking HIV treatment and PMTCT programs in Nigeria.
With a 5.65 percent prevalence rate, no fewer than 176,725 persons from 15 years above are HIV positive. Of these, 59.05 percent are covered by the ART scheme. The duo health bodies in the survey state no fewer than10,144 kids between the ages of zero to 14 years are living with the virus in the state, while 91.66 percent of them are on ART coverage. Unfortunately, no fewer than 7,757 persons in Benue freshly contracted the virus last year, while not less than 10,640 mothers are in need of Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission (PMTCT) care.
The UNAIDS says around 2.6 million children have been orphaned by AIDS. This, the global health body says can impact the kids’ health, safety and wellbeing negatively. Statistics from the organization indicate 20 percent of orphans and vulnerable children are frequently absent from school, while about 18 percent of them have been sexually abused.
In Nigeria, HIV continues to impact negatively on kids as they often become caregivers at such tender ages to parents living with the virus. Girls, researches and surveys so far, indicate are the affected ones. Thus, possibly one of the reasons why there are more boys in classrooms in many parts of the country.
Reports from a 2017 National Health Survey showed that 15 percent of girls and four percent of boys in Nigeria have sex before they are 15 years old. Another survey carried out in 2017 discovered 41.2 percent of females between ages 15 and 24 had had a sexual partner 10 or more years older than them in the previous year. Hence, inter-generational sexual relationships being very common. In the National Health Survey, it is stated that “this increases HIV risk among this group, as often, the virus is passed from older men to young girls.”
…
Mimidoo and Mivaaga were born with the virus but never knew about it until a neighbor mocked them with it when they were 11. They almost discovered in 2010 when their friend ended the friendship on the instruction of her mum. But never did because they moved to Abuja.
The Federal Capital Territory was a fun place to live until 2015 when their peers started avoiding them. “We felt like no one wanted us but didn’t know why,” Mimidoo spoke for her twin sister as well.
They started staying indoors playing alone. At school, they had lost interest in everything and were scared to mingle with the other kids. “We knew others were avoiding us but no one told us why,” Mivaaga added.
They have never really known their relatives. “We only hear about and see them in pictures on Facebook and Instagram,” Mivaaga continued. The only family member they had known was their maternal grandma, who unfortunately died in 2011.
“My husband’s family still blame me for his death. He took ill in 2015 and never recovered.”
“Why are you being blamed for his death?”
“They claim my husband contracted the virus from me.”
I sighed deeply. Still looking at her.
She continued “He didn’t contract it from me.”
“He infected you?”
“Yes.”
“How do you know?”
“We got married in 2001 but I was unable to conceive. There was nothing wrong with us medically. But his family kept harassing me. Then, they threw my things out in 2003. He immediately married another wife, but she left him for a richer man in 2004. So, he came back to beg me. Two months before I returned to him, I donated blood for my sister. I was tested for HIV before donating. I was negative. My (immediate) family didn’t want me to return to him. But the shame was too much.”
“What shame?”
“People mocked me that I couldn’t keep a man.”
“Who are the people?”
“Cousins, friends, aunties, uncles, neighbours, in short everywhere I went, they called me names.”
“But it wasn’t your fault,” I was already numb and very sad.
“I was too ashamed to face the society as a divorcee. So, I went back against their (my family) will. I conceived the second month of my returning to him.”
“Did you register for antenatal?”
“Yes.”
“How come your status was not discovered during antenatal visits?”
“Our family doctor managing me at the time said I must have contracted it during pregnancy. I was negative during my first trimester. Since I got married, no man except my husband has seen me naked. Even after his death.”
“So, why is everyone staying away from you and the kids?”
“My family members are angry I didn’t listen to them not to return to him. They said the family must never be known for HIV so I should bear my shame alone. His family claims I killed him. They say my daughters and I are useless. They say we have a killer disease, so are not part of their family.”
“So, why did you leave Abuja?”
“After their father’s death, his family practically fought me for our properties. The whole neighborhood got to know through them that my husband died of AIDS related complications. The news spread to my kids’ school. Everyone avoided them until a neighbor’s daughter mocked them openly.”
“How?”
“She called them walking bomb. She jeered at them during an argument. That is how they got to know about their status. I couldn’t bear it anymore, so left Abuja for Makurdi.”
“Do people here know (their status)?”
“No. It’s our secret.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“And, how do you ensure it never leaks?”
“I am working on us relocating. Hopefully by December, we should be out of Nigeria for good.”
“Really!? December this year?”
“Yes, December this year.”
…
Investigations so far reveal people’s negative attitude towards persons living with HIV is not only born out of stark ignorance about the virus but contributes to why there is so much secrecy about living with it. Ironically, persons who stigmatize and discriminate against those with HIV don’t want to be served the same food they dish out. This I discovered in interviews conducted in all states I have been to http://bit.ly/2MFdOBh , http://bit.ly/2MBQkNk, http://bit.ly/2LDXJGw, http://bit.ly/2PQ9NYI
Unfortunately, more interviews conducted revealed such parents and families are many across the country. For instance, Mr Anosisi Ibe, a trader, believes that disclosing his child’s HIV status to the school will lead to the termination of his studies by the authorities. He asked if HIV is curable. I told him it is not curable but is manageable.
“Manageable?” he repeated as if trying to make sense of the word. Then continued “how?”
I tell him there are medications to be taken, hence, will lead to a healthy life and HIV is not a death sentence. Mr. Ibe marveled at the ‘revelation’ I made. A friend of his who was close by interjected “you can take it and the thing will go out of you.” I didn’t know if that was a question or statement.
I told them when persons taking the medications- antiretrovirals, do so regularly, their viral load become undetectable, and they cannot infect others anymore.
So, I asked if he would still inform the school if his child tests positive? “No. No.” he answered. His friend rather suggests the government should create a place where kids living with HIV be kept. Mr. Ibe agreed with the friend. He believes that HIV should not be spread but kept a secret until the person living with the virus is okay.
He said I should simply call him Mr. T. He wouldn’t disclose what he does for a living. But said if his child tests positive to the virus, he wouldn’t disclose it to the school because he will be discriminated against. He rather thinks special schools be created by the government for persons living with the virus “until they get alright.”
However, he believes that any godly person living with HIV wouldn’t spread the virus but keep it within him or herself until he or she is cured.
Mrs Patience Omo, a trader, kept quiet for sometime before answering the question; what she will do if her child’s classmate were HIV positive. When she recovered her voice, she said she will educate her child not to play with sharp objects. Then I turned the table around. If her daughter were HIV positive, would she disclose it to the school authorities while seeking admission?
“For the child not to feel bad, I won’t say it,” she answered after recovering her voice again.
(MRS OMO PIC)
I asked why.
“Maybe because of that they may not take her. And they will not allow others go close to her.”
But she will ensure the child is taking her medication.
If already in school and her daughter is diagnosed HIV positive, Mrs. Omo will not let the school have an inkling about it for fear of stigmatization. Everyone, she said, will mind the way they play with her and “she will look different.” She fears schools which are already in the habit of discriminating against kids with other conditions will look down on her daughter.
Mrs. Stella Momoh, a food vendor, said she will go to the school to inquire what the school will do about it. According to her, children sharpen their pencils with razorblades and this is very dangerous. The food vendor went on to say “if the owner of the school is in his right senses, he should take away that child from that class, so that other children will not contact the disease.”
I asked doesn’t she think the child has a right to education? She agreed but argued about kids being kids “without self control”. She suggested such kids have their own school. I asked if she doesn’t feel that is stigmatization? She doesn’t think so. “I am preventing my own (child from contracting the virus),” she added.
But when I turned the table around- if her child were the one living with HIV, she interjected “God forbid! I cannot answer such question.” I explained that is why I included God forbid and said for instance. She maintained “Those are not my portion. That is not my portion. So, I can’t answer such.”
Mrs. Rose Edwards, a grandmother, said if her grandchild who is not yet in school were diagnosed HIV positive, she will first take her to church because the school cannot help her. Rather, the school authorities will tell her to go get the child treated. From church, she will then take her to the hospital to be treated. She believes there is no way the school authorities wouldn’t notice a child is living with the virus.
She said if the child is already in school, she will first get a cure for the HIV before allowing her go back to school.
SPECIAL SCHOOLS MUST NEVER BE CREATED FOR HIV POSITIVE KIDS!
Mr. Steve Aborisade, Advocacy and Marketing Manager, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), opines that most people who are HIV positive in the country will rather keep it to themselves because of the stigma.
He said parents who suggested in interviews that special schools be created for kids living with HIV “are saying that out of ignorance.” He continued “Because you are HIV positive, why will you need to be in a special class?”
Mr. Aborisade said when persons living with the virus are on treatment, the viral load become undetectable as it reduces significantly.
…
HIV BURDEN: FCT, ABUJA AND THE WORLD
The FCT, Abuja tops fifth with a 7.5 percent prevalence rate of persons living with HIV. This is according to NACA in her ‘Nigeria Prevalence Rate.’ However, in a 2017 NACA/UNAIDS joint spectrum estimates, the country’s capital territory has the lowest disease burden among all geopolitical zones with a 3.2 percent rating.
Other zones’ disease burden ratings include: South East- 9.5 percent; North East- 13.3 percent; North Central- 15.8 percent; North West- 16.5 percent; South West- 20.8 percent and South South with the highest rate at 20.9 percent.
The FCT, according to the spectrum estimates, is one of the priority states under the fast tracking HIV treatment and PMTCT programs in the country.
The UNAIDS reports that no fewer than 240,000 adolescents between the ages of 10-19 years were living with HIV in 2016. These, that year, made up seven percent of the total number of persons with the virus in Nigeria. HIV prevalence among this age group, the global health body says varies regionally, with 4.3 percent of 15-19 years old living with HIV in the South South, compared to 1.3 percent in the South East.
Unfortunately, the UNAIDS reports health outcomes for adolescents living with HIV in Nigeria are poor, while Nigeria is the only country globally where mortality in zero to 14 year olds is on the increase.
The UNAIDS’ 2017 report indicates no fewer 270,000 children between ages 0-14 years are living with HIV in Nigeria. The global health body says 24,000 children between 0-14 years of age died as a result of AIDS in 2016, while only 21 percent of the country’s kids living with the virus are on antiretroviral. However, 13,097 kids between ages 0-14 years newly started the ART recently. Unfortunately, only 74 children are known to be on ART 12 months after starting.
Despite their elevated risk, the global health organization’s report indicates that few adolescents in Nigeria test for HIV regularly. For instance, in 2017, according to the UNAIDS, only two percent of males between 15-19 years and four percent of females tested for HIV that year.
Surveys carried out through distribution of questionnaires in all seven states investigated in this series reveal all teacher-respondents have not received any form of formal training (within and outside their schools) on how to care for students living with HIV. Majority indicated their knowledge of HIV was and is still acquired from what they hear around them.
Over half of the teacher-respondents to my research questions say they will ensure there are no sharp objects in the classroom made up of HIV positive and negative kids. They also indicated would not the children (HIV positive and negative) have much contacts with themselves. Among other research findings, over half of the teacher-respondents indicated they will separate the food and spoons of HIV positive students from those without the virus.
All participants in the survey were assured utmost confidentiality. Thus, their names were not requested anywhere in the psychometric properties (questionnaires) filled.
The full research findings on ‘Schools’ knowledge And Preparedness In Managing HIV Positive Students’ carried out in Lagos, Ogun, Delta, Imo, Edo, FCT Abuja, and Benue states would be published in the followup update to this series.
Meanwhile, school headmasters/headmistresses and principals who participated in this survey have almost same experiences and thoughts as the teachers. None of them have organized any form of formal training for members of staff on how to care for students living with HIV. Neither do they have a written policy on the management of kids and staff members who are HIV positive.
Many, in their responses were honest to indicate they wouldn’t know how to manage known students living with the virus. Some indicated they wouldn’t admit such students into the school, and wouldn’t allow them remain in the school if already students. Some others indicated they would seek another staff member’s suggestion on how to handle the situation. The latter was the case at Government Secondary School, Karu, Abuja.
“THE PRINCIPAL WOULD HAVE REJECTED YOUR HIV POSITIVE CHILD HAD I NOT SPOKEN IGBO TO HER!”
Honestly, I had started asking myself why my supposed kids were rejected at most schools I went to. “Is there something I am doing wrong? Or, is it how I make the disclosure? Or, is it because I am a woman?” I queried myself.
So, I decided to try someone neutral. I got a guy. Tall, huge and good-looking. I call him Fine Man.
I didn’t tell Fine Man it’s a story. I told him I wanted to transfer my kids’ school but couldn’t get to Government Secondary School, Karu, Abuja by myself. I told him all the questions I wanted answered during the inquiry.
“But please, record all the discussions,” I had added.
“Why?” He had asked.
“So that I can have a feeling of the persons who will be caring for my kids. Remember, I told you one of them is HIV positive?”
“Yes.”
“From their voices I can tell if my kids will be safe with them or not.”
“Oh. Ok.” Fine Man agreed.
…
Fine Man had been directed around and even given a list. No, told to snap a list with his phone’s camera. The clerk who appeared to be more knowledgable on the job than the principal, had debated with the latter, the admission process for Fine Man’s kids. I don’t know why they thought the kids were his. While the principal told him to go to ERC, madam clerk said he was to purchase some scratch cards.
“ERC is for those already schooling within the FCT. And the child is coming from outside,” madam clerk had argued further.
Indeed, my supposed kids were relocating from Ilorin to the FCT.
The principal left her to handle that.
Then, Fine Man walked up to the principal for another talk. He explained there was something that needed to be sorted, as well.
The principal’s attention was his. He said it had to do with the child’s health. The principal sounded concerned. He went straight to the point.
“The child is HIV positive, hope it wouldn’t matter…” Fine Man said calmly.
“Ehn!?” The principal’s eyes were wide open, he later told me.
“The child is HIV positive…,” he repeated.
“I don’t know anything about that o. May be, let me ask.” The principal was naive about HIV and its management.
So, she turned to her clerk. They said somethings in Igbo.” Then, she returned to Fine Man.
“Ok. The child doesn’t need to tell anybody that she has that problem. But we the school, I think we should be able to know that this is the child’s problem, because in the process of admission, they do medical fitness exam. So, it should be stated there (in her form) so that we would note it, in order not to engage the child in highly difficult manual labour or whatever. That is the only way we can come in.”
She went on to say “the child will do thorough medical exam. Well, I don’t think that is an issue because it’s a personal issue. ”
She began commenting about the political program on the TV.
Then Fine Man took his exit.
On his way out, the clerk walked up to him for feedback.
“What did she tell you about the child’s case?”
“That she will do the medical checks but that I will let the school know about the issue.”
“When you mentioned it, she wanted to object. I now used (Igbo) language and told her, you know, she just entered newly. I told her the child can come, but the school authority should be able to know the child’s case; so that if there is any crisis, they will be able to know what to do at that particular time. And that is why your phone number is very important. So that if there is anything, you should be contacted.”
…
As I journeyed around, asking Nigerians questions on HIV, results of parts of the 2017 National Health Survey kept surfacing. Statistics from the survey indicate only 29 percent of females and 27.9 percent of males between the ages 15 to 24 could correctly identify ways of preventing transmission of HIV, and reject myths around transmission.
Such is the case with Tunmise James, a 19 year old who is acquiring skills to become a hairstylist at a saloon. I had asked her what she would do should any of her friends test positive to HIV.
Her response?
“I will not eat with a friend who is HIV positive. I will not speak with her because she has HIV.”
These are her preventive measures because she fears contracting the virus when she speaks and eats with a friend living with the virus.
But if she were the one living with HIV, she wouldn’t let anyone know about it while seeking admission into a school. She thinks she would be denied admission because of her status.
Feyitayo Shodeoluwa, a student, says she will tell her younger sister not to use sharp objects in school should any of her classmates test positive to the virus. She doesn’t stop there. “I will tell her to move a little bit away from her, so she should not really play with her very well like that.”
I asked what she meant by ‘move a little bit away from her.’
“So that she will not be able to contract the HIV. You know, kids they play a lot and they can injure themselves when they are playing. In that process, she might contract the HIV.”
Feyitayo wouldn’t allow her sister share spoons with a fellow child living with the virus. She fears her sibling may contract the virus when she shares a spoon used by the child who is HIV positive.
“HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN POSE NO RISK IN SCHOOLS”
Ms. Magda Conway, Consultant and Service Development Specialist, Children’s HIV Association, (CHIVA), United Kingdom, in the publication titled ‘HIV in schools: A summary of the good practice guide to supporting children living with and affected by HIV, emphasizes the need for schools’ management to ensure all members of staff have up-to-date knowledge about HIV; routes of transmission; and firmly establish the need for confidentiality.
According to Ms. Conway, if a child discloses his or her HIV status in school, he or she should be assured of confidentiality by the school authority. “Agree who will inform the parent that this information has been shared,” Ms. Conway advises.
The specialist who works extensively on HIV in children and adolescents states further that:
A child living with HIV in a school:
* Poses no risk
* Presents no additional insurance issues
* Requires no additional resources
In the publication, she stressed that “What they do face is a high level of stigma, the impact that this stigma can have on their wellbeing, and the additional complications that managing a long-term health condition may present to a family.”
According to CHIVA, HIV is a ‘non-notifiable disease’ because all persons living with it, including pupils and staff in schools cannot transmit the virus during daily contacts.
Ms. Conway says “Schools want to be places where all children are safe and able to equally access education. They are places where children’s attitudes and understanding of the world are developed; therefore schools should model an educated and calm response to HIV, as they would with any other health condition.”
KEY FACTS
* HIV CANNOT be passed on through normal daily contact, which includes playing and normal childhood interactions.
* Vast majority of HIV positive pupils acquired HIV from their mothers during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding.
* A pupil (or teacher) living with HIV poses no risk to the school community
* There has NEVER been a case identified of a child passing HIV to another child, teacher or member of the school community within a school.
* People living with HIV are able to live long, healthy lives
* Confidentiality is critical to people living with HIV due to stigma that is still present in the society
SOURCE: Children’S HIV Association (CHIVA) United Kingdom
“HIV POSITIVE KIDS ARE MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY”
Dr. Bolanle Ola, Consultant Psychiatrist and Head of Psychiatry, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) said schools’ rejection of students on account of their HIV status are discriminatory acts and these are not supported by the law.
He called on the government to enforce the anti-discrimination laws in the country because persons living with HIV are also members of the society and are entitled to all rights like other members of the society.
He stressed that every child living with HIV is entitled to education; being a fundamental human right. “They need to have access to education, health, recreational facilities and reasonable accommodation,” Dr. Ola added.
He urged persons living with the virus to work with organizations and agencies like Office of the Public Defender (OPD) that will enforce their rights.
Dr. Ola emphasized kids living with the virus are part of the society and special schools for them must not be created because it is stigmatizing and a breach of their human right.
NO PUBLIC HEALTH VALUE KEEPING HIV POSITIVE KIDS FROM LEARNING
Dr. Erasmus Morah, UNAIDS Country Director in Nigeria, says denying children living with HIV education on account of their status would be outrageous.
Addressing the instances of Ogun state owned schools not accepting kids living with HIVdue to alleged directives from the state’s education ministry, Dr. Morah said “Such would be an outrageous policy. Completely outrageous.
“And I don’t think any government of Nigeria be it state, federal or even local government should have such a policy. I don’t believe they have such a policy. If they do, it’s tragic, and it should immediately get to the attention of those who are concerned and change it.
“It shouldn’t be. It’s not consistent with the global practice, and to my knowledge of the Nigerian policy on HIV, it’s also not consistent with it. There is absolutely no public health value to keeping children who are HIV positive from learning. Absolutely none! Zero!”
Editor’s Note: Mrs. Betty Terfa, Mimidoo and Mivaaga are not the real names of the family living with HIV interviewed in this story. They were changed for their privacy. Images of the girls or other identifiers such as voice notes and videos, of the family, are not used to protect them from being recognized and stigmatized.
This story was produced with support from Code For Africa through her Naija Data Ladies Fellowship Programme.
A 102-year-old woman is under suspicion of the murder of her 92-year-old neighbor in a residential care home in Chézy-sur-Marne, northern France.
A carer found the “lifeless” 92-year-old woman in her room shortly after midnight Saturday morning and alerted emergency services, a spokeswoman for the High Court of Soissons told CNN, referring to a press release.
The woman’s face was visibly swollen, the court’s statement said. An autopsy revealed she died by asphyxiation, after being strangled and punched in the head.
The woman living in the room next door told the carer she had “killed someone,” the spokeswoman said. In a “state of confusion and agitation,” the 102-year-old was admitted first to a hospital, then to a psychiatric hospital.
Police have opened an investigation into “voluntary homicide against a person vulnerable due to their physical condition,” the AFP news agency reports. Prosecutor Frederic Trinh told AFP news agency that the suspect will undergo a psychological examination to determine whether she can be held criminally responsible for her neighbor’s death.
Police have not yet been able to question the woman, Trinh said.
A prominent Afghan religious scholar was killed and another 16 people wounded in a blast during Friday prayers at a Kabul mosque, officials said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion, which took place at the Al-Taqwa mosque in eastern Kabul, where Mawlawi Raihan had been the imam, or prayer leader.
Friday prayers, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, are usually well attended.
“Unfortunately in the blast, Mawlawi Raihan has been martyred and 16 other worshippers were wounded,” said Nasrat Rahimi, spokesman for the interior ministry.
The explosion took place around 1:20 pm (0850 GMT).
Police spokesman Firdaws Faramarz confirmed to AFP that Raihan was killed and said investigators were probing the nature of the explosion.
Local television channel Tolo said the explosion was caused by a bomb.
Raihan was relatively well known in Kabul, as he appeared frequently on religious shows broadcast on local TV.
While Kabul has seen frequent attacks on Shiite shrines and gatherings, particularly by the Islamic State group’s Afghanistan affiliate, Raihan was a Sunni.
Raihan’s Facebook page showed him standing alongside members of the Afghan security forces.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blast.
In the last three months, many buildings have collapsed around the country, the latest being the collapse suffered in Ezenwa Street Onitsha, where a four-storey building collapsed, killing six people.
The incidence of March 13, 2019 remains fresh in the memory of Lagosians and Nigerians in general, where 20 people died and 45 people suffered series of injuries at 63 Massey Street in Ita-Faaji, Lagos Island, after a three storey-building collapsed.
Research reveals that there have been 175 building collapses across the country, from 1971 to 2016, resulting in 1,455 deaths.
And of the 175 building collapse, 83 occurred in Lagos. Of the 1,455 recorded deaths from building collapse nationwide, 702 were in Lagos.
These tragedies have been partly caused by the bad works done by unqualified building contractors and the use of sub-standard materials for construction. Solutions are however provided on how these tragedies can be avoided.
The use of quality building materials is one major way to prevent a building collapse.
Experts say that one of the major causes of building collapse is the failure and lack lustre effort of building contractors to pay strict adherence to quality building materials.
A research by the Standard Organisation of Nigeria show that poor quality building materials, especially the cements, are major causes of building collapse in Nigeria.
To therefore ensure the avoidance of building collapse, builders should always ensure that the right materials and cement specification is used for the appropriate construction types.
Many people build without hiring the services of a competent building contractor. The engagement of a competent contractor is very important for building construction.
In using local builders, they must be able to do the job. A good way to discover this is to check their previous work, speak with their previous clients, and check their staff strength including number of skilled and unskilled workers.
Poor maintenance culture is another reason buildings collapse. Even the best constructed buildings need constant attention and if the attention is delayed, what starts as something very minor can turn quickly into an expensive man-made disaster.
It should be noted that all buildings deteriorate and so maintenance is necessary. Experts believe that maintenance work commences on the day the contractor lives the site.
Soil testing is very important before a building is erected. It enables the builders to determine soil strata, foundation type and where to lay the foundation for the building proper.
Places like Lagos have swampy grounds and many estates are built on recovered grounds. This means that the foundation of such buildings needs to be strong and carried out after a proper soil test.
It is also important to have the right design structure for a building. These designs must be reviewed and approved by appropriate authorities before construction begins.
There are many designs in Nigeria that are copied from other countries without considering the conditions that led to such design.
The national building code must be implemented to the fullest. It is a document expected to regulate the conduct and operations of professionals and stakeholders in the construction industry.
It is believed that the absence of a National Building Code has been largely responsible for the incessant incidence of collapsed buildings being witnessed across the country and that passing the national building code into law will regulate the use of non-professionals in the building and ensure the compliance by contractors to stop the use of untested products and materials to prevent structural downfalls later on.
If you want to build your resume and need some help, the following are some great resume building websites to consider.
Enhancv
This is a great resume builder that provides you with a bold and lovely template for your CV which allows you customize fonts, colors, backgrounds, and sections. It has three layouts – double column, single column and compact – which are all well laid out; it also has an option to share your resume on social media and get feedback on it from friends and followers. However, the site resources are not free: after a 14-day free trial period, you have to at least pay for the site’s basic package at $4.99 a month.
VisualCV
Here, you can either upload your information from a word document or enter it manually through its easy-to-use interface. There is a free version of its service, but with the free version you won’t be able to gain access to all the CV designs, neither will you have the ability to export your CV to Google Docs, remove the VisualCV branding from PDF downloads or use advanced analytics. Generally, the VisualCV resume builder gives a clean and professional looking output, which can either be published online or shared privately with employers for free. Also, it offers free analytics which lets you know how many times your resume has been viewed or downloaded, and where the visitors who viewed it are from. In addition, it also provides example CVs, based on industry, to give some hints on how your CV should look, based on your career path.
With this resume builder, you are required to manually enter the information on your CV, and while at it, you can add custom plain sections and remove standard sections. The site has a free version that allows you choose from six basic templates, and download or share your resume for free without a watermark, branding or any strings attached. Your resume can be downloaded as a PDF, HTML and TXT file, and you can publish your CV online and share it with potential employers using a shortened CV Maker url. The great part about this site is that it offers premium features for a one-time upgrade at $16 dollars, rather than having to pay a monthly fee.
Kickresume
It has a free version that gives access to basic templates, limited entries and categories, as well as access to cloud storage for resumes. When creating a CV here, you need to manually enter your information, and once you’re done, you can download your resume as a PDF file. Kickresume has a ‘slick and easy-to-use’ interface, and with the site you can filter CV templates by profession, when selecting a template for your resume.
In the last one week, hundreds of Nigerians, from the high to the low, have been kidnapped across the nation. Kidnapping has become such a threat that many are wondering how not to fall victims.
To protect yourself and your family, here are tips on how to prevent kidnapping:
Stop routine movement
Driving or walking through the same route will make it easy for suspecting abductors to gather information about you and can make it easy for them to track you down when they are ready to strike.
Find other streets or highways you can use when driving from home to work and back. Kidnappers rely on your routine to track you down and then look for a time when you’re most vulnerable to an attack.
Don’t discuss your family outside the house
Whatever issues you have with your family must not be discussed outside your house. This is to maintain safety as it has been reported previously that kidnappers also gather information from those in one’s neighborhood.
Do proper checks before employing workers
Before you employ your new house keeper, driver or any other employee, please do proper backgrounds check about that person. Know the family members and let the person give the name of a guarantor that can stand in for him or her.
This should be done because some people who are kidnappers may pretend to be seeking employment with you.
Maintain a moderate lifestyle
To avoid being kidnapped, you should check your lifestyle; if you have been living loud, try to do in moderation now by adorning not- too expensive wears that announce you. Looking expensive all the time can make you a target of kidnappers.
Don’t discuss money publicly
To avoid being a victim of kidnappers, another area you must check is receiving phone calls that involve discussing money, especially huge sums. When you discuss such amounts of money in public, you send signals to kidnappers that you are rich and can be their victim.
Know your neighbours
To avoid living close to a potential kidnapper, get to know that person living close to you well. Find out if the person is living alone or not and the kind of job that person does for a living.
Don’t get too close to a stranger
People that you don’t know, try not to share valuable information with them. That stranger may be a kidnapper in disguise so avoid strictly any stranger that tries to move close to you unnecessarily.
Keep emergency numbers
It is important to keep emergency numbers like numbers of the Police that you can quickly call whenever you sense you are being monitored by kidnappers or you notice anything strange in your environment.
Be aware of your environment
One of the major ways to avoid kidnapping is to be thoroughly vigilant which means you live in your house like an investigator. This entails being aware of every happening around you and your family every time. Vigilance keeps you alert when others are not.
Always keep your phone handy
Keeping your phone with you at all times is very important as it can be a source of help when there is a threat of kidnap. Don’t just keep your phone with you but make sure you have airtime, no matter how little so that it can be useful in times of danger.
When you notice a threat, attract the attention of people
Whenever you notice any threat of kidnap around you, attract the attention of people around to yourself by screaming or shouting. Keep doing this until you notice that people have gathered around you and can come to your rescue.
Don’t get too close to a stranger
Try not to share valuable information with those you don’t know. That stranger may be a kidnapper in disguise so avoid strictly any stranger that tries to move close to you unnecessarily.
Let someone know where you’re going
If you must meet a new acquaintance, make sure someone knows where you’re going and who you’re meeting. Leave message with a family member or friend where you’re headed and if possible, give the name of the person you’re about to meet and other details you might know.
Do not accept rides by strangers
Once you get into a stranger’s car, you are at their mercy. They could either incapacitate you or hold you hostage and you might not have an opportunity to defend yourself.
Tell your child to never talk to strangers
Train your children to avoid strangers, even if they seem friendly and offer gifts. If a stranger asks for help, tell your child to refuse and to call the attention of an adult immediately. If a gift is being offered, tell them not to accept anything.
Be careful about revealing data on social media
Be careful not to reveal too much about yourself or your family members via social media. No need to flaunt new cars, houses, or condominium units.
Never reveal addresses and be sure to turn off the GPS function on your smartphones. Don’t post on social media the places you frequent. Some people are unaware that Facebook and other sites reveal the specific location from where you are posting on social media.
Be vigilant not only at night, but at all times
It is true that most kidnapping crimes occur at night but there are also a few cases that happen in broad daylight. We should always be vigilant, not only at night.
ONLY last week I got a text from a lady who asked me how possible it is for a woman and her fiancé to stay alone together, see often and not have sex, especially if she is not a virgin? She said that she doubted that it was possible. I told her that it is possible to have a relationship, be in love and NOT have sex. I am not saying it is easy, only that it is quite possible. Quite a number of people are in pure relationships, and have successfully been in the past; they don’t just talk about it. So how do you go about it?
The first thing is to resolve to stay off sex. Then go beyond making the resolve to taking the time to identify the steps you need to take to practice celibacy. In making a resolve to stay off sex, it is important to understand that it not an easy task, why? For the simple reason, that sex goes beyond the physical, and requires effort to wean yourself from it if you are unmarried, and have tasted the apple. Another thing is to stay off suggestive literature, movies and so on. However, finding a passion of yours and pouring all your energy into it, leaving no space for anything else is a step in the right direction.
Create a mental picture of the right person for you, not necessarily physical features, but a set of attributes he needs to possess, or a checklist if you like. This step is key because you must decide what you will, and will not do before time that is the only way to avoid or/and overcome temptation. Ask yourself the question, “What kind of person do I want to be with or need to be with? Am I the kind of person such a person would want to be with”
Only date people who share your values. Why? Doing this will save you the heartache and embarrassment of wasting your time with people who do not share your values, and have an agenda of their own. A relationship is a two-way street, it won’t go the way you planned if you make the mistake of dating people who do not share your principles. Imagine being in a relationship with someone you really like whose sole aim is to seduce you, when you have no intention of playing that game; a recipe for disaster no less.
Create a platform for the kind of relationship you would like to have. If sex is going to be out of it, you will only succeed if you make a plan to avoid it, how? Never allow yourself to be alone in secluded places, no kissing or necking, no suggestive communication, never sleepover in each other’s homes, plan to have a “pure” courtship. In conclusion, make it clear from the onset that it will be a celibate relationship.
A bus driver has been found hanged on a tree after the bus he drove overturned and killed eight people in Welkom in Free State, South Africa, on Monday.
Free State police said the bus was travelling to Upington from Durban when the accident occurred on Alma road. Seven people were declared dead at the scene and one died later in hospital.
Provincial Spokesman, Brig. Motantsi Makhele, said three children and four females were among those who died in the crash.
“People injured have been transported to various hospitals. The information we gathered from the scene is that the bus might have lost control and overturned on a circle,” he said.
The driver was discovered hanging on a tree 300 meters from the accident scene with a safety belt from the bus.
Makhele said that an inquest into the 32-year-old driver’s death would be conducted.
“He was found hanging, but we can’t conclude that he killed himself. A culpable homicide case and an inquest would tell us how he died,” he said.
Details coming from the Health Department in the province indicate that when paramedics arrived at the scene, the driver spoke with them.
