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Athalia dreams of acceptance of people living with the HIV virus

The care for HIV patients in Curaçao is well organized, but unfortunately the shame regarding the virus is great. It is therefore quite a challenge for HIV consultant Athalia Alberto (29) to get HIV patients on the medication. Four years ago she started as a consultant at the Sint Elisabeth Hospital. With this she fills in the empty space that Sister Monica Kapel had left after her death in 2015. The young Athalia is now the point of contact and the confidential counselor for the more than 700 people who are being treated in Curaçao regarding treatment. an HIV-1 infection.

Well treatable "Am I dying? Is my hair falling out? Can people see that I am sick? Just a few questions that are fired at HIV consultant Athalia every day. When people have been referred to her, they often only just know that they are infected. Athalia helps them in her consultation with the acceptance of the disease and helps them with the many questions they have. Nowadays an infection with the HIV virus can be treated well. One pill a day is enough to suppress the virus. In the past you were doomed, now you can in principle live to 100 if you take the treatment consistently. But that is unfortunately a problem for some of the patients.

Athalia Alberto

Shame The shame of HIV runs deep. “Due to taboos and prejudices, people often do not show up for their appointment. Patients are often afraid that someone will find out that they have HIV, for example by running into someone they know in the hospital,” says Athalia. She sees so many patients a day, more men than women. She tries to think along with them and find practical solutions to problems that patients encounter. If they don't dare come. Sometimes it takes a lot of energy and persuasion to get someone to come to the outpatient clinic. "The acceptance for HIV here in Curaçao is low, so often patients do not even tell their own family about the diagnosis," said the HIV consultant.


Control over health Athalia tries to convince her patients to be open about the disease. “Once they've told them, it turns out not much is going on.” Athalia likes information, convincing people to take control of their health. Patients often do not know why they should take certain medications. “They get medicines from the doctor, but if you ask them why, they often say: no idea. It eventually hinders them because if they don't know why they are taking something, they stop taking it after a month," says Athalia. By providing a good explanation of why people really should use the medication for HIV, Athalia hopes that patients will continue to take the medication properly. Sometimes patients stop the medication because they feel better or because they have never felt sick. For many patients, Athalia remains a point of contact regarding the disease. As a nurse consultant, she tries as best she can to ensure that all patients receive the care they need. “The only time they're out of my sight is when they've moved elsewhere,” Athalia says. In recent years she has had to say goodbye to someone who died of AIDS a number of times. “That touches me very much, because my head says it shouldn't have been necessary. “If you take your pill every day, you stay healthy. That is very different from cancer, it is so unpredictable. People often can't believe that. “If they say but when am I going to die? Then I say: “si un outo ta dal bo”, when a car drives over you.”


Young mothers The most difficult moments are when she is confronted with young, often single mothers, who would rather spend the money they have on milk for their baby than on medication for themselves. They are still young and sexually active, it is very important to convince them of the treatment. “The most important thing for the children is that their mother stays healthy so that she can take good care of them,” says Athalia. In addition, if you take the medication properly, you can no longer transfer the virus to someone else. Unfortunately, it is still often difficult. These women are in survival mode. Not so long ago, for example, a mother passed away who left her young children behind. So in and in sad, but above all unnecessary.


Less convulsive Even when it comes to making the diagnosis, there is still a world to win. Women who are pregnant are tested for HIV, but women who, for example, have an abortion, are not. You could also offer these women an HIV test as standard. The sooner you make the diagnosis, the sooner treatment can start. With this you can prevent someone from developing AIDS, for example. Also, by treating people as early as possible, you can prevent them from transmitting the disease (without their knowledge) to others. For this it is necessary that people are more easily and more often tested for HIV. It's Athalia's dream that everyone just talks about it. “If you see how easy it is to talk about sex here, about buttocks and breasts: I've dated so and so. But when it comes to HIV, it gets difficult. It would be nice if people could talk about HIV as easily as they do about…..

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