In the summer of 2014 the Saint-Petersburg AIDS Center announced a contest for the creation of information materials on the topic of the prevention of transmission of HIV from mother to child. The winners of the contest were a non-profit which works to improve the quality of life of women who are affected by the HIV epidemic and other socially significant diseases, EVA.
“In recent years among all those who are living with HIV, the section of women is increasing. In general, young women are able-bodied and reproductive. One of the main tasks of the HIV specialists is that these women would be able to birth healthy children. Modern medicine allows for this, there are international and national protocols on the prevention of the transfer of HIV from the mother to child. Our patients are subject to appointments and the recommendations of doctors and almost all of them give birth to children who are free of HIV”, says Tatiana Vinogradova, the assistant to the head doctor of scientific organizational work at the Center of AIDS in Saint-Petersburg.
“Our patients must receive reliable and easy-to-understand information about HIV and pregnancy and have the opportunity to ask all their questions. Within the municipal HIV funding, our center has the opportunity to attract community organizations to work with us. These organizations have been working in this sphere for a long time and they are able to speak with our patients in the same language, like the non-profit EVA. Resulting from our partnership was the creation of this video and posters for an informational campaign on the prevention of perinatal transmission of HIV,” continued Tatiana Vinogradova.
“Our organization helps women who are affected by the HIV epidemic. Many of them have already become mothers or plan to have children and naturally are worried if it is possible to have a healthy baby. After learning of their status, some girls think that they can only spend the rest of their lives with HIV positive partners,” tells Natalia Khilko, project coordinator from NP EVA. “In this campaign we show the story of the Godlevski family, which proves that HIV is a chronic illness, which does not impose serious limitations on life. In order to be healthy, it is important to receive support from your partner regardless of whether they have HIV or not, to choose a doctor who you trust, and to start treatment on time.”
“An important component of this project is the cooperation between non-profits and governmental organizations. We are attracted to the development of materials directed at the target group by means of which there are simple and easy to understand ideas. Specialists from the Center of AIDS counseled the team in the importance of giving the necessary minimum information. Thanks to the collaborative work on the project additional material in the form of a longer version of the video and a booklet also appeared,” added Natalia Khilko.
The presentation of one of the videos took place during the press conference “Women Combating HIV”, which took place in Moscow on November 24th in dedication of World AIDS Day