Thus, began Naz’s journey of Care of Children Living with HIV and AIDS (CLHA). In the first few years the Naz Care Home had about 6 children from different parts of India who had been referred by other NGOs and Self-Help Groups of People Living with HIV and AIDS. Over the years, the number of orphan children living with HIV referred by childcare institutions, orphanages, hospitals, and other NGOs across India to Naz has increased.
The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) has designated the Naz Care Home as a Community Care Centre for children in 2009. It is a registered child care institution run in accordance with the Juvenile Justice Act. The focus of the home is to provide a loving and nurturing environment for children living with HIV who have been abandoned by their family. It provides them with a holistic approach to their health and well-being in a safe, caring and stimulating environment for them. There are a total of 19 children between the ages of 6 to 20 at the Naz Care Home. The children are provided services round the clock by a skilled and committed team that consists of: a Coordinator, a Social Worker, 5 caregivers and a physician. Our commitment to our children is for life-long care.
A physician visits the home regularly and treats simple infections and provides referrals as needed. The children have been registered at the Anti-Retroviral Clinic at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and regularly follow-up with the clinic for tests and check-ups with the doctors. All of the children are on Anti-Retroviral Therapy and the Care givers take extreme care to ensure that the children adhere to the medicine regime and that the children receive a highly nutritious diet.
All the children are going to school. Tutors in the care home provide the children with additional support. The children with physical and intellectual disabilities are homeschooled by the staff to focus on their basic reading and writing as well as social skills. They also receive vocational training from the AADI centre (Action for Ability Development and Inclusion) and a vocational counselor. For providing these children with physiotherapy Naz has tied up with the Vardan,(www.vardan.in) a welfare initiative by the Times Group. To provide children with a holistic development, the Naz Care Home offers regular yoga sessions, children have access to sport and books, computers, a wide range of games and fun activities too. The Care team strives to organise outings and exposure visits for the children.
They are aware of the monthly meetings that happen with Child Welfare Committees and register their representation through the Child Committee. Within the care home, in the monthly care home management meetings, the children participate and are actively involved in decision making – from the day to day activities at the care home to food menu to celebration of festivals.
Staff works purposefully with the adolescents to set goals and build skills on a pathway to independent living in a life free of stigma and discrimination. As a result, a few of the young adults have made the transition to independent living and they are now working in jobs such as in call centers.
Over the last several years, the Care Home has served as a Centre of Excellence for providing care to Children Living with HIV and AIDS. The Naz team trains staff from other Child Care Institutions on best practices (see training and awareness). Naz has also put in all its experiences to produce a handbook called ‘Positive Care Giving for Children Living with HIV.’ The handbook has 4 training modules: Basics of HIV And AIDS, Sex and Sexuality, Child Care and Special Issues.
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