Joseph's father is most grateful for the Center, and now believes that "it is very good for children to learn these things early in life so they will grow up as responsible people."


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Our observation about all of the girls was that they had a special need for information about health – the information they obtained from the CHIC was helpful, and we could tell from their conversations that they planned to change their behavior.


 

 

STORIES FROM KENYA

 

Edited by Jayne and Joseph Jackowitz; Consulting Editor, Krista Glen
Original Story Coordinator, Pauline Karani

 

In Africa's East lies Kenya, a sub-Saharan country with a population of 34.7 million. The AIDS virus is taking its toll on the citizens of Kenya – 1.2 million people, or 3.5 percent of the population, are living with HIV/AIDS. In an effort to assist Kenya in its fight against infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, WiRED has set up Community Health Information Centers (CHICs) that serve Kenya's grassroots populations by providing access to health information for health workers, primary care givers, and young people. Merging technology with a trained support team, these Centers enable people to take responsibility for their own health and well-being, and ultimately to recognize their ability to shape their own lives.

 

In 2001, WiRED began work on a network of health information centers in Kenya, including 19 Community Health Information Centers. WiRED's primary goal is to raise health standards of Kenyan communities, and members of the community believe these Centers are ideal resources from which to obtain current information about healthcare.

 

THE STORIES

 

It is difficult to comprehend the immense tragedy of AIDS as it sweeps across Africa. While the devastating Bubonic Plague killed about 30 million people in medieval Europe, the United States Census Bureau predicts that by 2010, sub-Saharan Africa will lose up to 71 million people to AIDS.

 

The following stories, sent to us by CHIC visitors, staffers and community members, reflect the anguish and sorrow, and the hope and joy experienced among those familiar with WiRED's Centers. These recollections describe the value of WiRED's programs, and show how WiRED is offering an opportunity to those who have lost all optimism to once again experience hope. Some of these stories below map the lives of young people, many of whom have been orphaned or have become infected with HIV. These children are destined to suffer the same fate as their elders if they do not receive help in time.

 


 

ELEVEN-YEAR-OLD BOY SAVES HIS FAMILY FROM HIV/AIDS

By Mary Makokha, Program Manager
Rural Education and Economic Enhancement Program (REEP)

 

Confirming the popular notion that "information is power," the story of 11-year-old Joseph is a testimony to WiRED's work in this part of the world.

 

Joseph's aunt had been sick for an extended period of time, and, like the rest of the family, Joseph was convinced that his former uncle's family had bewitched his aunt. Several local "experts" had, in fact, confirmed Joseph's belief and had prescribed several cures, including animal sacrifices. These futile attempts to help his aunt occurred before Joseph joined the peer educators' club in his school.

 

Members of the peer educators' clubs visit the Community Health Information Center on a regular basis and then provide HIV/AIDS prevention information to their peers. The oral education provided by the young trainers is geared toward abstinence. During one of these visits to the Center, Joseph read an HIV/AIDS CD-Rom from WiRED's medical e-library. That experience changed his life. Although Joseph was not allowed to participate in adult conversations, he found the courage to state the words that saved his family. "I have seen my aunt's disease on the computer," Joseph told his stunned family. Before anyone could stop him, Joseph advised them to secure an AIDS test. Joseph's father had also suspected that his sister was suffering from AIDS, but as he confessed, "I had no courage to suggest HIV testing." His 11-year-old son gave him the courage to urge his family members to heed Joseph's advice.

 

Joseph's father is most grateful for the Center, and now believes that "it is very good for children to learn these things early in life so they will grow up as responsible people."

 

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A RAY OF HOPE

By Joseph Onduto, Kendu Bay CHIC Coordinator

 

Back in the days when dance clubs were called "discotheques" and secretaries took shorthand, Jane Atieno was a remarkably beautiful woman, and all who knew her when could attest to that. But the Jane we know now is a pale reflection of her former self. She was infected with the HIV virus and her condition has now developed into full-blown AIDS.

 

Jane originally came to the Kendu Bay CHIC looking for help. She says that she is not afraid to talk about her past because she hopes that she can encourage others living in the "fast lane" as she once did to seek help or information.

 

Jane also believes that WiRED International is doing a great deal to educate the community on the dangers of HIV/AIDS. She is coping with her situation by getting a lot of help from WiRED, and frequents the CHIC to access accurate information that she can, in turn, pass along to the individuals she addresses. Although AIDS is draining Jane of the physical beauty she once had, her inner beauty and strength is a ray of hope to others.

 

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REHABILITATION THROUGH KNOWLEDGE

By James Mwangi, Client Support Staff
Nakuru Community Health Information Center

 

One Wednesday morning, 12 uniformed teenage girls entered our centre, and were accompanied by a gentleman who introduced himself an administration official for the Nakuru Probation and Rehabilitation Girls Centre.

 

The girls were placed into groups of three and each group sat in front of a computer. Not all of the girls could understand English, so a client support staff member helped the girls understand the material.

 

The groups looked through one CD regarding HIV/AIDS, all at the same time, as the computer network was able to facilitate this continuity. An additional advantage was that the girls were able to become more familiar with the use of the computers and were able to navigate the information.

 

The girls were astonished by the images they saw. This was evident by their expressions of shock upon realizing the extent of the disease and ensuing infection. They asked questions and discussed issues relating to HIV/AIDS. Our observation about all of the girls was that they had a special need for information about health – the information they obtained from the CHIC was helpful, and we could tell from their conversations that they planned to change their behavior.

 

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DISABLED OUTREACH

By John Odour

 

I met a 17-year-old girl at Cheshire home and was impressed by the way she was struggling to access HIV and AIDS information on the computer. During her first visit, the young girl was not sure if she would be able to get the information by herself. However, in her second visit she took the mouse to point the curser to the icons on the monitor and clicked it to open the tutorials on HIV and AIDS. I could see a broad smile in her face, showing that she had made it at long last.

 

It's my wish you could see that smile from the young lady, speaking louder than the words she was trying to stammer out. The smile showed how joyous she was to get the HIV information from the latest technology, provided by WiRED. The young girl was grateful for the opportunity, and said it was first she had seen anything like it in her lifetime. Viva, WIRED!

 

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THE REAL SILENCE

By John Odour

 

On April 13, 2004, I attended a workshop organized by GRACE Africa, an organization that helps to improve the education standard of deaf people in Kenya. My attention was drawn to a young, deaf girl in her late 20's, living with the HIV virus. As she explained her story in sign language to me through a translator, her colleagues folded their hands and paid intent attention in sadness and disbelief as they learned about her situation.

 

One profound request she made, in sign language, was, "WiRED International, if you could help, assist me with the proper information on HIV and AIDS. Really I am in need of your assistance."

 

A chill went through me and I wondered how she would cope with the virus and the disability. I could not help but think what a big challenge in life she has, and what a double silent-life experience she is going through!

 

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INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR CAMPAIGN AGAINST DRUG ABUSE AND ILLEGAL TRAFFICKING

 

WiRED International – Kenya, will hold a discussion forum for youth during the International Day for Campaign Against Drug Abuse and Illegal Trafficking, at WiRED. The main facilitator will be Dr. Susan Magada, Consultant Psychiatrist and drug specialist. During this forum, WiRED will demonstrate the use of information technology to disseminate vital health information to every age cohort in the community.

 

Since drug abuse and HIV infection are closely related, WiRED will also provide important information on HIV/AIDS and other STDs to the youth during this event.

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I AM A PEER EDUCATOR AND PROUD OF IT!

By James Omondi Ouko
Pandipieri CHIC

 

The computerized health information center is one of the best things to happen to our community. The facility empowers the youth, especially those who have been marginalized. It provides accurate and current information on matters pertaining to health. As a peer educator, I am a strong advocate for increased focus on working with the youth, youth groups, peer education and advocacy clubs in schools and community. By working with these groups, we will disseminate information and knowledge to grassroots beneficiaries.

 

Many youth come to me for guidance and I am very happy that I am contributing positively to my community. Because of this I always thank my God for having brought WiRED International to us. I am now a person of value and I strive to excel.

 

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WiRED WORKING WITH PEOPLE WITH HIV/AIDS

By James Mwangi

 

My name is James Mwangi. I am 29 years old and I am living with HIV. Throughout my school life, I never had access to detailed information about HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections. My parents never discussed sex with my siblings and me.

 

At home everyone was afraid of me after I learned I was infected with the virus. They set separate utensils and a washing basin for me. I felt stigmatized and became very traumatized. I joined a group of young people known as Appropriate Grassroots Initiatives (AGRI). Their objective is to advocate for behavior change and improve access to HIV/AIDS care and support services to the infected and affected.

 

In 2003, AGRI, in partnership with WiRED International, opened up a community health information center (CHIC) at the AGRI offices in Nakuru. Here the community accesses health information free of charge. AGRI also integrated a voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) site.

 

WiRED International, through other organizations in Kenya and elsewhere, have put up many CHICS. I thank both WIRED and AGRI. Thumbs up for AGRI and WIRED International! If there had been information centers like CHIC where people can freely access information on health including HIV/AIDS and even STDs, before I became infected with HIV, then perhaps I wouldn't have become infected.

 

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WiRED INTERNATIONAL: AN APPROPRATE WAY TO REACH ADOLESCENTS

By Phinehas Muthuri
Maua Community Health Information Center

 

WiRED International has created and delivered an appropriate way to reach adolescents with the facts of HIV/AIDS and other health issues. CD-ROMS present extensive information in a straightforward, factual manner that adolescents can understand and accept.

 

Kenya Health Information Center

There is room for interactive dialogue and suggestions from the youth. There is sufficient information on birth control, books and alcohol, munchies, sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, sexual decisions, and student stress. Facts and myths on HIV/AIDS and sexuality are covered in great detail. There is a great deal of information on tobacco and alcohol consumption. The needs of medical and nursing students are adequately addressed. Acute respiratory infections, malaria, diarrheal diseases and many other health conditions are well covered. With WiRED, college and university students have acquired wonderful 'lecturers' on the CD-ROMS. Research work is now made easy.

 

Talk of free health education and you'll find it at WiRED Community Health Information Centers (CHICs). We are receiving the information absolutely free of charge.

 

At last the youth have a reason to smile and take courage that they understand important health issues. The materials are suitable for all ages, not just adolescents. At the age of 84+, just like at 9, many people comfortably learn at CHICs. Learning is at one's own pace and timing. Community health workers as well as traditional herbalists benefit from the information. Traditional birth attendants gain a lot. There are no barriers whatsoever. We at Maua Methodist Hospital-Meru CHIC join the rest of WiRED family to welcome all to the CHICs. Keep up the good work, WiRED!

 

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COMMERCIAL SEX WORKERS: SUFFERING FROM AN ACUTE DEFICIENCY OF HEALTH INFORMATION

By Erustus Omondi
Migori Community Health Information Center

 

Reaching Commercial Sex Workers (CSWs) has been, for us, a very challenging task. Very proudly we are excited to announce the beginning of a helping relationship with them. The foundation of our success was built on an effort to understand this group of people. This, we did by way of an informal listening survey.

 

It's quite encouraging that we recorded a positive response from the bar owners and managers. They believed that the center would be of great help to the CSWs who, they said, were suffering from an "acute deficiency of health information." They identified unwanted pregnancies, HIV/AIDS and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases as the main health problems of the "bar workers."

 

Ultimately, we attribute the success of the intervention to WiRED's belief that the axis of an effective social marketing strategy evolves around beneficiary involvement and a sustained interest in education campaigns.

 

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KIAMBU YOUTH REACHING THE UNREACHABLE

By Pauline Karani, WiRED Program Manager

 

The youth in Kiambu, Kenya, came together with the aim to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS in their community. Tired of seeing their parents, brothers and sisters die of the disease, they decided they would do all in their power to stop this disease….

 

With the help of WiRED International and The Firelight Foundation, the group was trained in the use of information technology and a WiRED Community Health Information Center was established in their area. Each month the Center receives more than 600 visitors. To these youth, serving the community is a most fulfilling experience. One of them, Bernard Maracha, said, "I have found that I am not just an assistant to the clients. I am also a friend, a confidant, a shoulder to cry on, a teacher, a sounding board – practically everything. I love my work and the more people I see accessing health information, the more fulfilled I feel."

 

John Oduor, another of the Kiambu youth, spearheaded the development of a health information program specifically for the disabled and their caregivers. This WiRED program is based on the following objectives: To create awareness among the disabled about diseases like HIV/AIDS/STDs, and other health issues/information; To provide caregivers with skills that enable them to conduct their roles effectively and confidently; To reduce marginalization of the disabled and close their information gap; To improve the accessibility to health information to the disabled; To create forums that encourage discussions about disabilities and reduce stigma; and To intensify the participation and integration of disabled individuals into existing health information programs.

 

Each of the WiRED Community Health Information Centers in Kenya is now making special efforts to reach the disabled.

 

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LIVING POSITIVELY

By Muratanya Reuben, Client Support Staff
Maua Community Health Information Center
Edited by Evelyn Beck

 

A young couple visited the Maua - Meru Community Health Information Center (CHIC) and requested that they access information on HIV/AIDS. As the client support staffer took them through the CD, he learnt that the couple was married and they were both HIV positive.

 

"I look forward to seeing this couple healthier and stronger in the future. This will be a testimony that WiRED CHICs are not established in vain," said the client support staff member.

 

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NOW WE KNOW WHAT OUR DAD IS SUFFERING FROM

By Anthony Mwaro
Community Health Information Center Client, Mombasa
Edited by Evelyn Beck

 

Two months ago my father was suffering from severe leg pains. He consulted a doctor and was diagnosed with "intermittent claudication," and was scheduled for an operation.

 

We had never heard of such a disease, so I paid a visit to the WiRED Centre in Mombasa, where I accessed all the information that I needed to know about this illness. I learned how one gets it, the prevention measures and the required treatment.

 

This information came in handy because we were able to know what steps to take, the decisions to make, and what exactly would happen during the operation that my father was soon undergo.

 

Thank you, WiRED; because of you our family is better informed now.

 

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COMMUNITY HEALTH INFORMATION CENTER VOLUNTEERS: THE 'HEARTS AND SOULS' OF THE CENTERS

By Pauline Karani
Edited by Pauline Bunyasi

 

Popularly known as "the Computer place," WiRED International's Community Health Information Center (CHIC) in Butula is proving to be the best strategy for fighting AIDS.

 

All manner of people walk into the WiRED Community Health Information Centers (CHICs) in search of information. The WiRED volunteers serve them all with enthusiasm. Perhaps the information they give will save one of their own from the curse of ignorance. An informed society, they believe, is a liberated society. The Centers are about more than computers; they are about people – both the information seekers and the information givers.

 

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BUTULA TRADITIONAL HEALERS ACQUIRE A NEW STATUS

By Mary Makokha, Program Manager
Rural Education and Economic Enhancement Program (REEP)

 

Mwanaisha Narotso wears many masks. She not only sells fruit and grains at the local market but she is also a well-known traditional birth attendant and a herbalist.

 

Like other herbalists, Mwanaisha deeply believes in her traditional cultural practices. Her work as a traditional birth attendant is revered in the community, but now carries associated risks because of the HIV virus.

 

WiRED's Community Health Information Centers have special programs for herbalists because some of the herbalists' traditions unknowingly contribute to the spread of HIV. The herbalists now visit the Center's medical e-library twice per week for ongoing training and to share information with herbalists in other communities.

 

In addition to learning about the causes and treatment of HIV and AIDS, the herbalists have increased their general knowledge about herbs and diseases.

 

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PERISHING FOR LACK OF KNOWLEDGE

Sister Bernadette Nealon, Program Manager of the Community Health Program in Kisumu, Kenya—where one of WiRED's Community Health Information Centers is located—related this account to Pauline Karani, WiRED's Administrative Manager.

 

The man walked slowly, seemingly in pain, into WiRED's Community Health Information Center (CHIC) in Kisumu. The staff member spoke gently and inquired what kind of information the man wanted. "I need to know about sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS," he replied.

 

The man earnestly explained his predicament to the staff member. He had been suffering from painful symptoms for several weeks, but was too ashamed to ask anyone for help. He had lost hope and thought he was going to die. When he heard about CHIC he decided to see if he could get any sort of information that might help.

 

He would have died in pain and hopelessness, if not for the information provided by CHIC. His is only one of many stories; rural Kenyans rely on CHIC for a broad spectrum of health information needs. With your generous support, WiRED can expand these services, and bring them to parts of Kenya that lack even the most basic health information. Please help WiRED help others from perishing for lack of knowledge.

 

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WIRED'S COMMUNITY HEALTH INFORMATION CENTERS:
EVIDENCE OF IMPACT AT THE GRASS ROOTS

by Barbara Yates, R.N., WiRED Volunteer

 

Teachers are using the HIV/AIDS files for additional information to add to the required HIV/AIDS curriculum just initiated throughout Kenya. Local public health officers – to fulfill their requirement to alert people to the dangers of HIV/AIDS – are also visiting the Centers to increase their own knowledge. For them, the Community Health Information Centers are a primary source of information. The Ministry of Health representative in charge of the Busia district described the Centers as "a unique strategy of information dissemination" and expressed hope that another Center would be set up in the district headquarters' main hospital. So, the question is, Are the Centers having an impact? From this nurses' viewpoint, they are having more of an impact that we could have ever imagined.

 

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MEDICINE AT WIRED'S COMMUNITY HEALTH INFORMATION CENTERS: WHERE TRADITION MEETS TECHNOLOGY

WiRED, Euroregional Commission and Tuzla Medical School join in the celebration...

 

Picture from Kenya

They serve as midwives in their villages, and they are fervently searching for ways to prevent transmission of HIV from mother to child during birth. With the new information they are able to gain at the Centers, they will be prepared to use their traditional, respected role in the community to make a persuasive case to their village for safe practices that will prevent continued spread of HIV.

 

African physicians trained in Western medicine find WiRED Information Centers valuable resources, as well. For many of the doctors, the new CD-ROMS are the only source of updated materials they have.

 

Now that physicians have become familiar with the Center resources, they are sending patients directly to the Centers to sit through tutorials that address the patient's particular problem.

 

Many of the young teens who come to the center are orphans; all of them have seen someone's parents die from AIDS. The center provides the teens with a tutorial that explains in detail how HIV transmission occurs and what steps they must take to avoid contracting the disease.

 

Community leaders come to the centers looking for ways to cope with the AIDS crises. They watch a deteriorating human resources infrastructure. Because AIDS appears most easily in the young, most sexually active segment of the population, a large part of a generation's youthful energy, skills and productivity is being lost. The community leaders realize that containing the AIDS crisis is one of their most urgent tasks.

 

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WIRED'S COMMUNITY HEALTH INFORMATION CENTERS:
TRADITIONAL HEALERS BENEFIT FROM TECHNOLOGY

by Pauline Karani, Administrative Manager
WiRED Community Health Information Centers, Kenya

 

Picture from Kenya

In a remote area of Western Kenya is a small village called Butula. Here, the villagers, most of whom are illiterate or semi-literate, met with great jubilation and enthusiasm the installation of four computers by WiRED International. The Community Health Information Center is in one of the few rooms with electricity. The village is so remote that you still bring the telephones to life by cranking them, and electricity is still seen as a rare commodity.

 

For the first time ever, a group of traditional healers and birth attendants have come together to share experiences and information and to get medical updates, especially on HIV/AIDS, using computer technology at the Community Health Information Centers. This, despite the fact that for many generations they have kept their knowledge and information family secrets.

 

Upon the opening of the Community health Information Centers (CHICs) in February 2002, these traditional practitioners have united and formed a group to access information in order to improve their skills and knowledge.

 

They said because of the formation of the Community Health Information Centers, they had for the first time ever agreed to unite, share and access information together in order to help raise the standards of living and the level of health care of their people.

 

On our second site visit in March, it was a delight to learn that the traditional healers have become regular visitors to the Center! It offered proof these "grassroots" Health Centers are indeed providing a link to the outside world and to information from those with whom they would otherwise not have regular access. Through these links, untold members of the community are being assisted in learning about current health issues and especially HIV/AIDS developments with new information. It is often said that information is power, and the truth of this saying can be seen clearly emerging from the establishment of these Community Health Information Centers that are a great tool for the communities they serve. One thing is for sure, the WiRED Centers are making history, if not yet in the entire country of Kenya, at least in one village called Butula!

 

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AIDS COMMUNITY HEALTH INFORMATION CENTERS INITIATED

By Brian Jacobson

 

Picture from Kenya

A recent Washington Post study estimates that currently 5,500 people die of AIDS in Africa each day. The study goes on to project that by 2010 the daily death toll will increase to 13,000 Africans, day after day. Already, 13.2 million orphans have been left by the AIDS epidemic; by 2010, estimates project 42 million orphans.

 

The life expectancy in southeastern Africa has dropped from a 65- to 70-year range to less than 40 years. More than half of the 60 million Africans who have become infected with HIV in the past 20 years acquired the virus when they were between the ages of 15 and 24. The UN estimates that in sub-Saharan Africa, over eight million youth now have AIDS.

 

The WiRED community resource centers provide up-to-date information on an extensive CD-ROM collection compiled by WiRED from the latest AIDS material available from government institutions, public research groups, and companies involved in AIDS-related research. The CD collection also includes a comprehensive library of medical conditions, treatments and prevention techniques for illnesses common to the region.

 

Professional medical staff, home healthcare workers responsible for the care of family members with AIDS, and young people looking for HIV/AIDS prevention information will all have access to the resource center.

 

Many of the coordinators were left orphans at a young age. They sensed immediately the importance of having up-to-date facts to use in the treatment of AIDS and in the ongoing efforts to prevent the spread of HIV infection.

 

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WIRED PROVIDES REAL HOPE AND GENUINE PROMISE FOR ORPHANS IN KENYA

 

Picture from Kenya

John, Paul, Triza, Joseph, Susan, Francis and Benard are orphans who spend their days in Kiambu, a massive slum on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya. They lost their parents to the AIDS epidemic. Losing hope and lacking skills in a country suffering from high unemployment and a rising level of poverty, they were eager to learn new skills that would help them create a secure future. WiRED provided that opportunity in March when it teamed with Global Strategies for HIV Prevention to provide these young people with access to a resource that is becoming a necessity to economic, political and social life everywhere in the world. The computer education and skill development will connect these orphans to the outside world and contribute to their self-sufficiency.

 

These young people had never before seen a computer, and that created a challenge. In their week-long training session, the objective was to determine if WiRED could take complete novices from zero to sixty in four days – from no knowledge to the cultivation of skills adequate to search the Web, use e-mail (with attachments), run a word processor (including text and graphics integration) and handle a graphics design package. Beyond that, could WiRED teach these young people to train others?

 

The results were striking. By the end of the week, the students had acquired a remarkable set of computer skills. The computers are now housed in a community church so these orphans can train younger children and use their new computer skills for AIDS education and economic development.

 

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HOW THE MESSAGE ABOUT AIDS TRAVELS

Related to Pauline Karani by Mary Makokha,
Coordinator of the Rural Education and Economic Enhancement Program (REEP)

 

Recently, three young men came to the Butula Community Health Information Center (CHIC) just to satisfy their curiosity.

 

These days, the topic of conversation around town is the new Center. Even in most homes, conversations for the past months have revolved around the Center's activities.

 

People are very surprised to find that the computers actually show pictures of diseases and have audio explanations of the details highlighted in the photos. After seeing the CD-ROM tutorial on ukimwi, Kiswahili for AIDS, they often tell their friends and family, "After you see the one on ukimwi you will never be the same again!"

 

While going through several of the CD-ROMs, the three young men recognized their brother's illness in one of them. Early the next day the three youths put their sick brother on a bicycle and wheeled him to the counseling center. The counselors met with the brother and advised him to have an HIV test. He agreed to this and was found to be HIV positive.

 

They went home with mixed feelings; they were happy that they did not have the virus and yet sad for they knew they did not have long before their brother died. He was, after all, in the last stage of AIDS. As they were leaving the Center, one of them mused, "Maybe if the Center had been established much earlier their brother would have been saved from the virus." Perhaps.

 

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SHARED VISION BRINGS WIRED TO KENYA

 

From the moment Kenya gained independence in 1963, local and national leaders have envisioned a day when the country could finally eradicate poverty, ignorance, and disease.

 

In 2001, WiRED became an ally in Kenya's fight against poverty, ignorance, and disease. WiRED's mission – to provide information and communication resources to disadvantaged people around the world – fits perfectly with Kenya's long-held vision and its present day needs.

 

In Kilifi, a young laboratory technician, Edwin Mwayongo goes to the Center to review CHIC information sources to keep informed on medical innovations in his area of work. With this knowledge, he hopes to upgrade his education from his present certificate level to a diploma or even a degree. Edwin says, "The Center is a godsend. I view it as a way to keep current in my field and as preparation for more formal education."

 

The need for more Centers in other parts of the country cannot be overemphasized. An expanded network of Centers will give Kenya a powerful tool to use in reaching for that long-held vision-a nation free from poverty, ignorance, and disease.

 

People are very surprised to find that the computers actually show pictures of diseases and have audio explanations of the details highlighted in the photos. After seeing the CD-ROM tutorial on ukimwi, Kiswahili for AIDS, they often tell their friends and family, "After you see the one on ukimwi you will never be the same again!"

 

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Nancy's Experience at the Kibera Community Health Information Center (CHIC)
By Zipporah Wanaswa, WiRED Regional Manager

 

Kibera slum houses almost two thirds of the poor population in Nairobi City. It is the largest slum in Africa with a population of more than 800,000. Most of the people cannot afford fees to access computer agencies or cyber cafés. They spend most of their time working hard to fend for their families. In an attempt to raise an income, most of the people, especially women and young girls, end up in prostitution. As a result, most of the population in this region is vulnerable to HIV and many other infections. This is where Anne, one of the client support staff at the Kibera CHIC, had an encounter with Nancy* a 41-year old woman and Miriam* her daughter aged 15.

 

Nancy and Miriam had both visited the center to access health information. Nancy requested to look at the CD-ROM on Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI). Anne assisted her in using the CD-ROM but Nancy was rather hesitant to look at the information. Upon inquiring, Anne found out that the woman did not want to read through the CD-ROM with her daughter watching. She did not give reasons why.

 

The CHIC Volunteer set up a separate computer for Miriam who wanted to learn more about Malaria, while her mother went on to look at the CD-ROM on STIs. At the close of the session, Anne developed a rapport with Nancy, who revealed that she suspected she had STI, but did not want to disclose this to her daughter. It was then that Anne understood the woman's predicament, so she referred her to the clinic run by a community-based organization affiliated with WiRED, the Kibera Community Self Help Project (KICOSHEP). Nancy was subsequently diagnosed with an STI and is now undergoing treatment and counseling.

 

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*(not their real names)


 

Sex Worker Renewed
By Miriam Kamau
Nakuru Community Health Information Center Volunteer

 

A middle-aged woman walked into the Nakuru CHIC site and inquired about our services. At some point she asked me, "What is the Center all about? Is it some sort of a clinic?" I did my best to explain. Once she understood, she settled down to access information. She was most interested in the CD-ROM about Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs). I guided her through the CD. In the course of our conversations I established she had symptoms of a sexually transmitted infection.

 

She confided in me and told me that she engaged in commercial sex. I informed her about safer sex practices and referred her for HIV/STI testing. A few weeks later the lady came back to the CHIC and has now become a regular client learning about many other health issues—especially reproductive health. In addition, she has now started selling vegetables as an alternative to commercial sex work.

 

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Saved by a CD-ROM
By James Dikir
Kajiado Community Health Information Center Volunteer

 

One bright April morning a young man walked into the WiRED Center in Kajiado and went straight to a computer that was not being used. While seated, he went through the CD list and settled on the STI CD. Being familiar with the computer and CD operation, he did not require any assistance in accessing the information. He went through the CD for 60 minutes. After he had finished, he informed one of the client support staff that he had learned of some infectious signs and symptoms that were similar to the ones he was experiencing. He promised to consult a doctor.

 

After one week, the client support staff made a follow-up on his progress. She learned from him that he had seen a doctor in a private clinic who took specimens for examination. Thereafter, he was treated with oral and injectable antibiotics. He was advised to take his wife for medical examination so that the problem could be solved once and for all.

 

We are delighted to know that the information in the Center is helping our clients learn about infections and their bodies - enabling them make wise decisions.

 

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Information on Diabetes
By Cleophas Muliro
A Community Health Information Center client

 

I have been Diabetic for about a year now. We have a family history of diabetes and I am the fourth in a family of twelve to be diagnosed with the disease.

 

I came across a poster at the entrance of the Sheetal Plaza building in Mombasa and read about the information services at the CHIC. The reception of the staff and the quality of the information were impressive. I am happy that I have accessed very important detailed information from the Center that I had never gotten from my doctors; (e.g., healthy living, blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels, heart and general complications a diabetic person is likely to undergo with poor blood sugar controls).

 

I will be a regular visitor and even download more information to take to my family members who also suffer from Diabetes.

 

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Editors' note: This collection of essays was written by average people who have visited or served as counselors at WiRED's Community Health Information Centers (CHICs) throughout Kenya. The CHIC program is an innovation in dispensing information about HIV/AIDS and other critical health issues to grassroots communities. These Centers integrate computer technology, counselor support and a wide array of community resources in the fight against AIDS in Africa. The essays were written by Kenyans. Their stories are sometime humorous and sometimes tragic, but they all express hope, and they all come from the heart. The stories have been edited for length.

 

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