Today I had the honor of meeting with U.S. Mission Uganda’s 2014 PEPFAR Heroes, a group of inspiring women working to combat the spread of HIV in Uganda. Catherine Nakidde serves as a peer educator and a Head Prefect at her school, telling her classmates, “Free ARVs meant a life for me.” She encourages young people living with HIV to take their ARVs and live positively. Hellen Okwii is a Senior Nurse at Mbale Regional Referral Hospital Antenatal Care Clinic who has dedicated her efforts to increase male involvement in antenatal services for HIV-positive mothers and their unborn babies. In two years, male participation has increased by 85%. Our third hero, Vicky Adong, is a midwife at the Nakatiti Health Center II in Naibyata village where she has integrated HIV testing for all pregnant mothers and referred those who are HIV-positive for treatment to prevent transmission of HIV from mother-to-child. As a result of her efforts, her health center nearly tripled the number of mothers attending their antenatal care visits and delivering in the facility, while helping to ensure that those who needed specialized care and skilled delivery services were given the support they needed. Please join me in congratulating these PEPFAR Heroes who are changing lives in Uganda and who will embody the message that “An AIDS-free generation starts with me.”
Posted on: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 11:07:45 +0000
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