Lubabalo Care Worker Training Program:  (education, prevention, care, and treatment)

South Africa is a nation in the midst of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  Currently, there are over 5.4 million South Africans living with HIV, and so many of these people suffer through the course of this disease without any medical care.  Anti-retroviral medications are simply not available for the majority of South Africans living with HIV.   From the onset of HIV infection, the reality is a 7 to 10 year period of gradual decline in health, to serious opportunistic infections, to debilitating, bed-ridden last stages of AIDS.  Our Community Health Care Worker program was designed to address this need.  This program is called Lubabalo Care; Lubabalo is a Xhosa word that means ‘grace.’  Lubabalo Care is about identifying and training the ladies living in the townships who have an empathetic heart for people living with HIV.  They complete a 2-day training program that prepares them to advise, counsel, and care for people living with HIV.  These ladies assist with medications, help with bathing, cooking, feeding, and other needs that may arise.  Most importantly, they are a source of emotional and spiritual support for people living with a terminal disease that  is highly stigmatized.  Now into its second year, the Lubabalo program has 6 ladies on staff in South Africa, providing care for people living with HIV in the Motherwell townships.