Denpasar (4/10).This time we hear stories from the field, the story was told by one of the staff who work in Bali Health Foundation (Yakeba). People with HIV AIDS (PLWHA) often get stigma and discrimination in the society. Like a story from Dewa Ayu Sukarmiasih or we called her Desak who work as a peer support in Yakeba . She told her experience during work with people who are living with HIV. She often saw stigma and discrimination that still happen in the community. Like the story about her experience with one of people who living with HIV AIDS, let’s call him A.
Desak was met with A around 2011. At that time the A condition in sickness and in that time Desak start to work with him because it’s her job to give support for people living with HIV AIDS, provide moral support, provide information about health and medicine as a supervisor in order to be empowered. “In the first time we try to talk with him but he ignores it, but because we often meet either at the hospital or at home after her discharge from the hospital, we were finally able to communicate. Time after time, day after day so we’ve been doing well as a close friend to the point that A can also provide support to another friend who was sick,” said Desak.
To remain healthy, people living with HIV does not just rely on medication. Psychosocial situation should be strongly supported in order to keep people living with HIV can survive in addition to routine treatment. At one time the A began to face a situation that is not good, especially on psychosocial aspects. And high stress levels begin to affect the motivation to live because of the magnitude of the burden of psychosocial pressures that it faces. At that time, the A complaint fatigue, no appetite and could not swallow food. Due to the severe conditions of the A, Desak bring the A to the Emergency Unit at one large hospital in the district where he lived for immediate care. In the hospital, A gets Obstacle to Health Insurance administration, we call as Jaminan Kesehatan Bali Mandara (JKBM). Because according JKBM procedure, the patient should be taken to the Health Centres which is available in the environment in advance to get a referral letter to take to the hospital. It’s just a situation that could not be passed because of the condition in question so drop then he immediately brought to the Emergency Unit at the County Hospital. And when JKBM care, the health centre’s staff did not give. Having given a sense by then urges the mechanism can be solved by direct coordination between the health centres, hospitals and local health department.
A was in care for 8 days in the hospital. What is interesting here friends Peer Support Group ( KDS ) which is a combination of peer support groups Yakeba, Yayasan Maha Boga Marga and Yayasan Spirit Paramacita would take turns waiting when these friends not relatives. Finally he pass away on Sunday precisely dated on September 8 2013 at 10:30 pm in the room where she was being treated. Also the KDS friends all came when it was already at late night.
In accordance with traditional Balinese ritual, the dead body should be consecrated to the cremation funeral (Ngaben). Turns obstacles arise again, the stigma and discrimination coming up again even when the person already died. By the time when we wash the bodies many people not take apart to wash the bodies especially his family and his neighbour. There’s only from KDS who bathe the corpse A because they already know that the body of people living with HIV cannot transmit HIV, it is very regrettable, quite a lot of people but just watch it.
Desak hoping stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV can be eliminated. Important to remember that after 4 hours of PLWHA dead bodies then the HIV virus also dies along with its host. “People with HIV AIDS should not receive stigma and discrimination like this, especially after the death. We will continue to give sense to the community that such incidents do not happen again “ said Desak . But we will always remember that person A has contributed a lot in the response to HIV. Because no doubt that they are very important role in the response to HIV. So treat them appropriately, so the situation of HIV can be controlled together.
By Dony Fauzan