Activities for AIDS victims: Single Mother Families & Children

The social conditions of Iran and the high probability of Iran entering the third stage of HIV-AIDS epidemic, led SPASDI to start a new chapter in its activities since Dec 2007. The major source of AIDS epidemic in Iran is intravenous drug abuse, followed by unprotected sexual intercourse through alarming increase in prostitution, which is in turn fueled by escalating poverty. The main focus of government efforts, UN agencies and other NGO’s is on containing the spread of the disease (e.g. by distribution of sterile syringes and condoms), while helping with the treatment of AIDS patients.

However, there is not enough focus on some of the most vulnerable and harmed victims of AIDS, namely single mothers who have been infected by their drug addicted husbands and widowed following the death of their husbands, leaving them and their children with the burden of HIV-AIDS. Also, there are children born with HIV from parents that have abandoned them in orphanages unprepared to take care of them.

Many of these victims don’t have a proper understanding of HIV-AIDS and its implications for them. Moreover, they are afraid to openly disclose their illness, due to the negative biases regarding the disease in society. Those who do disclose their infection with HIV are deprived of the simplest social services (e.g. refusal by dentists or other physicians for giving medical services, rejection from jobs, deprivation of children from school registration, etc.). Those who do not disclose their infection, would create risks of spreading the disease.

Therefore, SPASDI decided to start a new line of service for the marginalized group of victims since late 2007. New services for the protection of HIV-positive single mothers and children have been developing through the following phases:

1- Identification of HIV-AIDS victims; all centers and organizations somehow involved with AIDS (including Ministry of Health special treatment hospitals and clinics, and other governmental and non-governmental organizations) have been contacted to identify single mothers and orphans infected by HIV-AIDS. SPASDI has declared its readiness to accept such victims for special services.

2- Provision of basic financial support; SPASDI started fund-raising efforts to support all referred victims with their basic medication and treatment and other livelihood needs.

4- Capacity development; since the summer of 2008 regular weekly classes and group therapy sessions have been organized for single mothers infected with HIV, complemented by home visits.

Handicrafts manufacturing classes are now underway and the selling of sample products has been successfully piloted, as one of the ways to lead a productive life and to generate income.

5- The support family program; one of SPASDI's unique and multi-purpose initiatives to address the needs of vulnerable victims of HIV-AIDS, especially children, is to form a support family for them. The direct target group for this service are HIV positive children who have lost their parents or who have parents disqualified to take care of them. A 24-hour special home-like space has been designed and is under construction, with a capacity to keep about 10-15 children, to give them equal opportunities like other children. Single mothers who are themselves infected with HIV will be the nurses and "support step mothers" for this home-like nursery. In this way a job opportunity will be created for our HIV positive single mothers, who would not only be afraid to be around infected children, but would also care for them with much better understanding of their needs. Moreover, qualified families would be able to adopt these children, thus paving the way for a major cultural shift in society to accept AIDS as a social disorder, without putting the blame and burden on its victims, especially innocent children.

Relevant government and UN agencies have been informed of the above initiatives and their representatives have had the chance to closely observe our services in action. However, all of the above initiatives are funded and delivered by private donations and volunteer work, without any financial support from the government or the UN agencies.

In the second year of our new services for HIV-AIDS victims, we are already seeing our efforts bear fruit. Almost all of the infected widowed mothers were under severe psychological pressure and suffered from depression, some of whom had even attempted suicide. But, now they have been able to start a new life, following the financial, medical and emotional support they have received through SPASDI. They have now a better understanding of their disease, openly disclose the fact that they are HIV positive, have become ambassadors to educate others about HIV-AIDS and help its prevention, and are beginning to become empowered to manage their lives and families with more confidence.

Some of them have been able to buy their own small apartment flats, with the loans they have received through SPASDI. A few of them have received loans to start a small home-based business. The most interesting is that one of them has been able to remarry with a healthy man who is not HIV positive! This is a particular success, given the fact that even remarriage for healthy divorced or widowed women is faced with lot of cultural barriers in Iran, let alone for HIV infected women.