By Kuda Pembere recently in Bindura
Renowned motivational speaker, Napoleon Hill once said, “Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends everything.” Though it may appear like Sisyphean task at the moment since he is yet to enroll for Advanced level studies, Hill’s quote aptly befits this 22-year old lad’s desire to become a medical doctor.
Hillary Ngirazi from Bindura is a buoyant Community Adolescent Treatment Supporter (CATS) at Foothill’s Rural Clinic in his District. A dedicated CATS, Hillary walks 8 KM to attend support group activities every first Saturday of the month to discuss with other adolescents at the clinic. But this humid dusty Friday, a National AIDS Council (NAC) Mashonaland Central-arranged Media Tour sees the bubbly articulate lad hike to the clinic to share his story.
Growing up, Hillary wanted to be a medical doctor, a goal he is keen to achieve despite the challenge of school fees. Hillary sold mobile phones in the streets, a hustle since abandoned as he considers farming to raise money for school. His father died when he was doing Grade 1.
Health issues have been at heart since childhood which lit the desire to work for the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC). I am doing my best but things are a bit tough for me. At the moment, my mum is not working and to ask school fees from my step-father is a bit difficult. I have to stand up for myself to realise my dream,” says Hillary.
“I cannot at home doing nothing. I believe I have a bright future ahead. I have to rise up to realise my dreams. If one has a desire, it is up to them to bring it to fruition. If I don’t have that desire, then it would be for nothing. Because of this desire, this pushed me to take my medication religiously for I don’t want to be sick. If sick you won’t have time and energy to chase the cash. You know we young men survive on hustles. When sick, it’s difficult to hustle in the streets.”
Leaving school was quite painful for Hillary, the once bright student. The bespectacled Hillary came out with four Ordinary Level passes after enduring a six-month hiatus induced by an eye condition.
“As for my education, I am not at peace with the way it ended. During that time, I had challenges with my eyes and as you can see, I wear spectacles. From May, to September 2019, I was not going to school. This period was stressing to the extent I lost hope. I came out with one A and three Cs. I didn’t expect that because I knew my potential at school,” he says noting his benefactor passed on the same time he was diagnosed with the ocular condition.
This was a wobbling moment for him, but that passion is still ablaze.
“But now, I have this hunger to pursue my education further to my desired goal. I don’t even care about what people say that it is embarrassing to return to school at an older age,” says Hillary.
Hillary’s burning desire to serve as a Government doctor has also been fueled by his current occupation of working with adolescents with HIV. He says there is that mutual respect between himself and his community.
How he learned of his HIV positive status:
For Hillary, it was a feeling similar to that of churches where you feel the preacher is shuffling through your skeletons in the closet. He confronted his aunt about the HIV topic at school which was an accurate simulation of his life. His aunt revealed the truth that he was born HIV positive, marking a depressive spell later on quelled through Zvandiri’s psychotherapy techniques.
The only persons that Hillary listened to upon learning were his teachers and caregivers. At school, stigma was rife which saw him get labels such as Jehovah Ndouyako (Lord, Here I come), Zvakuda jeso muponesi (This needs Jesus Christ’s intervention), Mukondombera, and Mr Matororo.
“Being HIV positive affected my education while in primary school when I learnt I was on ART. The support groups helped me a lot because initially I didn’t have a friend. Just the thought of being HIV positive, would make me uncomfortable amongst people.
“Most people thought i was rude. I was always angry. But as time went on, after joining the CATS program in Mutare, 2017 where I stayed, I started to have a high self-esteem. I would participate in group activities at school. I also joined Youth plan, a group, in 2018.
“I was also selected as a Youth Plan leader. I also learned that being HIV positive isn’t the end of the world because during that time, I felt this power to accept being HIV positive,” he says.
His Life as a CATS
Hillary visits adolescents living with HIV encouraging them to adhere to their treatment despite the area being sparsely populated.
“Some of the challenges includes visiting some homesteads which are like four or five kilometres apart which is a bit tiresome and also we need airtime for SMSes because some of the adolescents do not have WhatsApp compatible phones to remind them about refilling their ART medication,” he says.
Mashonaland central NAC provincial manager Mr Edgar Muzulu stated the provincial prevalence according to latest figures now stands 10.35 percent.
“In terms of prevalence, we have Bindura District at the top, followed by Shamva, and in third position is Mazowe District.
Zvandiri, which trains these HIV positive adolescents embeds counsellors in government clinics to foster adherence of ARVs while overcoming stigma.
“Mental health was a key component right from the beginning in 2004 and I say this because adolescents told us we get antiretroviral medicines but we need more than that if we’re to survive and thrive so taking their ARVs wasn’t enough they wanted safe spaces and skills to learn how to thrive with HIV so how to cope with all the multiple challenges that they face. So the foundation of the model was that we integrate mental health and psychosocial support within HIV care and treatment,” said Zvandiri Executive Director Nicola Willis told HealthTimes in a separate interview.
A Mental Health Psychosocial Support for Community Adolescents Young People Living with HIV (MPSS CAYPLHIV), a study done by Zvandiri found that 65 percent of adolescents are at risk of developing mental health disorders.
