| Kurisanani - Tzaneen Dioceses Response to HIV/AIDS |
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Kurisanani, a Tsonga word meaning “we help each other grow”, is a non-profit organisation established in 1989 by Sister Ancilla, who was working as a nurse for the local clinic in Tzaneen at the time. She teamed up with a group of about ten youths to help them tackle some of the problems facing youths, and to provide a holistic and compassionate response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the Tzaneen diocese. History Established in 1989, Kurisanani was officially registered as a non-profit organisation in 2003 after Sister Sally Duigan took over as coordinator in 2001. After it was registered, many congregations around Tzaneen supported the idea - not only the youth, but the entire community because of the help offered at large. Currently Kurisanani operates from out of an old church which was converted into office space for them to carry out their daily activities. Programmes Kurisanani offers four programmes in various parts of Tzaneen including Dwarsrivier, Giyani, Makhado, Malamulele, Modjadjiskloof, Ofcolaco/Nwabitsi and Phalaborwa: Education for Life Programme: an education programme to create awareness about HIV/AIDS and motivate people to value their bodies. The programme encourages subjects to abstain from sex and in that way protect themselves from the disease. There was a need for this kind of programme because of the high number of people affected by HIV/AIDS in the area. The majority of subjects are youths who say they engage in sex to feel loved, to fit in, or because of peer pressure. The programme encourages them to change their behaviour and attitudes towards sex, and educate them on prevention of the disease. Home-based Care Programme: Kurisanani educates the community and care givers on how to take care of ill, home-based people. It also encourages subjects to be more engaged in the community by being volunteers. Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) Programme: Kurisanani engages with the extended families of orphans, and also works closely with home-based care givers and volunteers. They also offer orphans, vulnerable children and home-based carers the psycho-social training which is mainly focused on children’s physical, emotional, social, spiritual and mental needs in light of their economic, cultural, political, family and community environments. The programme also assists them gain access to documents and grants, to acquire basic needs like food parcels, uniforms, blankets, clothing, and sports kits. It also helps keep children in school programmes and hosts play days where children can play sports together. Their after- school programme sees volunteers help children with their homework and assignments. Anti-Retroviral Therapy Programme: The programme helps HIV/AIDS victims with CD4 counts below 200 obtain anti-retroviral drugs and be monitored for side effects throughout the treatment process. They put the patients who are on ARVs in groups of three using different colours - red, blue and green - to get an idea of how many report side effects from the drugs. They also host support groups once a month. Celebrations are held whenever a group of patients completes their six months and one year treatments. Staff Kurisanani employs approximately 11 staff members. Three of them are permanent employees who get monthly salaries and the rest receive stipends. They also have eight representatives in Dwarsrivier, Giyani, Makhado, Malamulele, Modjadjiskloof, Ofcolaco/Nwabitsi and Phalaborwa who receive stipends, as well as 30 volunteers per town who receive no compensation. Funders / donors Kurisanani are currently funded by Catholic Relief Services, the South African Catholic Bishop Conference (SACBC) and Winterveld. Challenges Lack of transport makes it difficult to visit patients in deep rural areas and transport them to their regular checkups and treatments. Not having the full support from the extended families of HIV/AIDS orphans who head up their homes. Not having support from communities in reporting abuse of orphan children by their extended families. Contact details Contact person: Mrs Trish Orr Position: administrator and training coordinator Tel / fax: 015 307 6363 E-mail address: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Physical address: 31 Draai Road, Tzaneen, 0850 Postal address: PO Box 261, Tzaneen, 0850 Bookmark this article:          |
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