Zambia Union of Nurses Organization: Read Journal

ZNA NoNA Bi-annual Bulletin

Zambia/Norwegian Nurses Association, HIV/AIDS Project for Nurses & Midwives

2nd Quarter Bulletin 2005

Volume 3 Issue 2: April-June 2005

ZNA/NNA HIV/AIDS PROJECT

Foreword
The Zambia/Norwegian Nurses Association HIV/AIDS Project for Nurses and Midwives, quarterly bulletin is intended to give update information on the project, thus its activities and any other issues that may be deemed fit for dissemination. The bulletin is distributed free of charge to all stakeholders and health institutions for management and nurses information.
Editorial Comment
The ZNA/NoNA Project editorial team encourages all nurses and any other concerned parties in ensuring an AIDS free Zambia to read the bulletin for current updates, make suggestions and comments to the bulletins through the following address:

The Editorial
ZNA/NoNA Project—Quarterly Bulletin
Box 50375, Lusaka.

Project Overall Objective

To reduce the prevalence and incidence of HIV/AIDS infection among nurses and midwives and contribute towards improved health and working abilities for those infected and affected.
Project Target group and coverage
The project is intended to cover all nurses and midwives in Zambia, both in public and private sector. Thus coverage is nationwide and for all categories of nurses.
Areas of Intervention and Goals

Zambia/Norwegian Nurses Association HIV/AIDS Project for nurses and midwives has interventions in six areas viz;
Knowledge
Goal: To equip nurses and midwives with knowledge in HIV/AIDS, which will enable them develop and implement effective procedures for clinical work.
2. HIV and the Workplace
Goals: i . Develop and implement national and local infection prevention and control guidelines in the workplace.
ii. Contribute to the extent possible to the improved procurement of adequate equipment to eliminate transmission of the virus at the workplace.
iii. Eliminate stigmatization and discrimination against HIV+ Nurses and Midwives.
iv. Develop sustainable structures at workplace level, which are able to sustain activities when Norwegian support comes to an end.
3. Voluntary Counseling and Testing
Goal: Contribute to increased use of VCT services by nurses and midwives.
4. Care and Support
Goals: i. Establish a sustainable network among nurses and midwives in support of colleagues who are HIV+ and or sick from related diseases.
ii. Develop and implement national and local guidelines on care and support to health personnel who are infected and or affected.
iii. Contribute to making appropriate treatment available to nurses.
5. HIV Prevalence and Incidence
Goal: Establish an overview of prevalence and incidence of HIV/AIDS among nurses and midwives in Zambia.
6. Patient Care
Goal: Prevent the HIV/AIDS negative consequences on health services and its users resulting from reduced workforce.

ZNA-MOH Collaboration grows as ZNA/NoNA Project continues imparting knowledge to nurses..

Zambia Nurses Association's cordial working collaboration with the Ministry of Health has remained warm and positive making the service delivery to nurses through the two parties quite beneficial. As the ZNA/NoNA Project continues to educate nurses and midwives on HIV/AIDS Management, Care and support, ZNA and Ministry of Health has continued consulting each other on how best to continue enlightening and protecting nurses in the world of AIDS. The two parties has so far, working through the project, come up with HIV/AIDS workplace guidelines for nurses and midwives. The guidelines which are user friendly will go a long way in giving guidance not only to nurses but any other service provider in the health sector in as far as HIV infection is concerned. These guidelines can also assist managements in coming up with workplace policies for their workers. It is ZNA's wish that nurses will make use of this document in their workplaces.

NORAD Director visits ZNA/NoNA Project
Sissel Hodne Steen, Director; Department of Human Development and Service Delivery, at Norad in Norway visited the ZNA/NoNA Project on June 6, 2005. The visit was intended to acquaint herself to the activities Norad is supporting under the Zambia Nurses Association. Ms. Sissel, who was to visit other projects supported by Norad in Zambia, wanted also to know how ZNA is collaborating with other countries in the region as it had a well established program for nurses and midwives in the area of HIV/AIDS. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) for nurses was another area of interest Ms. Sissel wanted to know how the project is handling it.

Briefing the visiting NORAD officer, the ZNA/NoNA Project Manager; Ms. Olive Ng'andu informed Ms. Sissel that the project was undertaking interventions on HIV/AIDS and the nurses in Zambia in six areas namely; Knowledge, HIV and the Workplace, Voluntary Counseling and Testing, Care and Support, HIV Prevalence and Incidence, and Patient Care. With regard to collaboration with colleagues in other countries in the region ZNA through the project has shared their experience through exchange visits and paper presentations at international workshops on HIV/AIDS.

As for ART for nurses Ms. Ng'andu informed Ms. Sissel that ZNA through the project has actively lobbied Government for provision of free ART for nurses and other health workers in the nations. This lobbying, as far as ZNA is concerned, has been successful because Government has responded by making ART free to all citizens. Thus our lobbying for health workers has resulted in a more broader response covering all the nationals that need ART but were unable to access it due to the cost attached to it.

Ms. Sissel, who was impressed with expertise in the project team commended ZNA for putting up a well structured program of implementing interventions in combating HIV/AIDS among nurses and midwives in Zambia. She assured the Association of NORAD's continued support and encouraged the project team to continue working hard and diligently.

In response the project team, through the Manager thanked NORAD for the great work it has done for nurses in Zambia through the ZNA/NoNA Project. The knowledge, care and support programs that has been initiated under the project for nurses and midwives are a great milestone in perfecting the welfare of the nurses as they relate to the effects and impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Zambia being a third world country will always appreciate countries and organizations whose interventions in the Zambian community are aimed at reducing the disease burden thereby improving the health of the nationals.

MEUSTA Project team visits
Zambia Nurses Association, through its ZNA/NoNA Project has become a piece of attraction from not only neighbouring countries but to most countries in Africa and world over in as far as managing an HIV/AIDS program for health care professionals is concerned. This has been evidenced by the number of learning visits that the Zambian project is receiving from other projects and organizations from other countries. During the month of April, 17—24, this year a team of teachers from the MEUSTA project in Tanga, Tanzania visited Zambia to have a feel of how ZNA/NoNA was implementing its program on HIV/AIDS among nurses. A team of eight (8) which was led by the Project Manager; Mrs Lizzie Shauri, had a full week of learning experience and were taken to most implementation areas throughout the country. Other than taking the visitors to project sites ZNA/NoNA also shared their experience in administrative management of the HIV/AIDS program to their Tanzanian friends, this is an important component for successful implementation of any project or national program.
It is our hope and trust that our colleagues learnt something from their visit to our project in Zambia and that they will be able to make use of the experience learnt to the benefit of their intended beneficiaries back home.

As the Tanzanian Nurses Association (TARINA) President also visits
As the HIV/AIDS pandemic hasn't spared any part of the world or creed, the Tanzanian Nurses Association has got attracted to the program Zambia Nurses Association is doing for its nurses. TARINA hopes to implement or undertake a similar program for its nurses in Tanzania. Big as the magnitude of the of the task ahead is, TARINA detailed their president to undertake a tour of duty to ZNA to gain some experience on how best to approach and/or implement such an undertaking.

Mr. Joseph Kaupunda, the TARINA President, arrived in Zambia, courtesy of SANNAM twinning program which saw Tanzania pairing with Zambia for experience sharing. The visit, from June 24—27, saw Mr. Kaupunda attending the ZNA/NoNA Project Coordination meeting at Protea Hotel in Chingola.

2005 National Coordination Meeting
This year's national coordination meeting which was held from June 24-25 at Protea Hotel in Chingola was a kind of its own. It had in attendance all the provincial coordinators and their deputies, except for a few provinces where provincial trainers were sent as representatives.
Representing ZNA was the President, Mr. Thom Yung'ana whilst Mr. Miachael Vitols was on hand to participate as the representative from Norwegian Nurses Association and Norad. The meeting was officially Opened by Mr. Joseph Kaupunda, TARINA President, who was a special guest at the meeting. Mr. Kaupunda thanked ZNA for inviting him to this important gathering which reflects at how ZNA/NoNA Project is performing throughout the country. In view of the importance of the meeting Mr. Kaupunda requested all participants to actively participate throughout the two days deliberation.
Following the two days of sharing information on the status of the project countrywide the meeting came up with the following resolutions that will guide the operations of the project till the next coordination meeting;

2005 Resolutions

All provinces should retire previous quarter running expenditure for them to receive new funding.
No support group should keep cash at hand of more than K500,000 (five hundred thousand), monies should instead be kept in the support group account.
Support groups should enter into written agreements with their respective local managements whenever they are allocated infrastructure for business use.
All provincial coordination meetings should be held before the national coordination meeting is held.
Any member from the provincial team who misses two national coordination meetings without valid or convincing reason should be relieved of her/his post in the project.
ZNA/NoNA Project should introduce selection of any five support groups to be used as best practice among all support groups under its program.
Transparency should always prevail and promoted at all levels of the project.
Provincial coordinators and trainers' allowances shall be increased by K50,000 (fifty thousand) effective 1st quarter 2006.

HIV + Nurses Go Public

ZNA/NoNA Project HIV/AIDS awareness campaign and information sharing at workshops for nurses and the introduction of care and support groups for nurses throughout the country is yielding positive results in most of our workplaces. A good number of nurses living positively have come out in the open and are doing a highly commendable work as advocates for change in the world of AIDS and the nurse. With the advent of ARVs it has become logical to most nurses to disclose their HIV status with a view to encourage other colleagues that may be dying in their cocoons. The project will make use of these nurses in the continuing war against the HIV virus.

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