Peers Defending Peers (2017)

The Help Needed Fund and the web portal Takie Dela launched a page to collect donations for the Peers Defending Peers project, which is being implemented by NP “E.V.A.”.
 
This project is the continuation of the Peer to Peer project that our organization had implemented in 2016 with presidential grant funding. More details can be found here.
 
Counselors for the Peers Defending Peers project are people living with HIV, tuberculosis, and viral hepatitis.
 
‘Peer counselors’ are not lawyers, but situations in their life pushed them to deal with legislation and learn how to properly use it. Now they share their experience about how to receive the necessary and rightfully deserved help using simple legal algorithms and to fight against stigmatization of the disease. In particularly difficult cases, the services of a professional lawyer are offered free of charge.
 
In general, peer counselors are sought out in cases when the rights of infected people are violated, for example, if they are not provided with prescriptions for life saving medication or mark the front of medical records with symbols to denote ‘HIV’, therefore divulging HIV status without the patient’s consent.
 
Peer counselors are responsible for answering questions on the phone, Skype, and all kinds of messengers. Personal meetings also take place.
 
Project timeframe — 12 months.
 
Funding needed — 2 999 363 rubles.
 
The link to donate on the Takie Dela portal: https://takiedela.ru/topics/ravnyy-zashhishhaet-ravnogo/