Guidelines for Counselling around HIV and Pregnancy - Southern ...

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Formula: A dry powder that, when added towater, makes milk used to feed a baby.HAART: This stands for Highly ActiveAnti-Retroviral Treatment. This meansthat at least three ARVs are being usedfor treatment.Immune system: Part of the body thatfights infections, diseases and viruses.HIV and AIDS destroy the immunesystem.Infected with HIV: This meansthat a person is carrying the HumanImmunodeficiency Virus (HIV) inhis or her blood. This person willtest positive for HIV.Informed consent: This means thatthe person who gives permissionunderstands exactly what they areconsenting to.Informed decision: Making adecision based on facts and correctinformation.Legal guardian: A person who looksafter a child, in the eyes of the law. Thisperson is not always the child’s parent.Mastitis: An infection of the breast ornipple.MTCT: This stands for Mother-to-ChildTransmission of the HIV virus. This meansthat during birth and breastfeeding, amother can sometimes pass HIV to her baby.There are ways to stop this transmission,called PMTCT. This stands for Prevention ofMother-to-Child Transmission.Natural birth: Giving birth through thevagina.PCR test: PCR stands for Polymerase ChainReaction. It is a test used to check for HIV inblood.Preventive counselling: Giving your .client information on how to prevent himor herself from being infected with HIV,and to practise safe sex.PTCT: This stands for Parentto-ChildTransmission of the HIVvirus. PPTCT stands for Preventionof Parent-to-Child Transmission.This means that mothers, fathers andcaregivers can transmit HIV, and need totry to prevent transmission.Re-infection: This can happen when aperson living with HIV has unsafe sex .(sex without a condom) with another .person living with HIV. This means that theperson is infected with HIV again. The newinfection could be a resistant strain of HIV.Resistant HIV is a type of HIV that can fightanti-retroviral drugs, stopping these drugsfrom working properly.Safe sex: Intercourse that prevents infectionwith HIV and other sexually transmittedinfections. One way people can have safe sexis by using a new condom every time theyhave sex.Sperm washing: This is when semen thathas HIV in it is washed away from sperm tomake the sperm safe for use in artificialinsemination.Stigma: This is judging people negativelybecause you think they are different.Termination of pregnancy: This is anoperation to end a pregnancy. This isalso known as a TOP or an abortion.Ultrasound scan: Using a specialmachine to look at an unborn baby inthe mother’s body.VCT: This stands for VoluntaryCounselling and Testing for HIV.Viral load: This is the number ofcopies of HIV in a millilitre of anHIV-positive person’s blood. A highviral load means that there is a lot ofHIV in the blood, destroying the .CD4 cells very quickly.Vulnerable: This is when someone iseasy to hurt or attack, because they arefeeling emotionally weak.Basic Counselling Skillsand TechniquesCounsellor preparationCounselling is a structured conversation between two or more people. Theseare a client (or clients) and a counsellor. The aim of this conversation is to helpthe client work through a particular problem or situation that he or she faces.This book has been written to help you counsel couples and individuals who areplanning to become pregnant, or who have recently discovered that they arepregnant. The couple or individual may or may not yet know their HIV status.As a counsellor, you could find yourself in a number of different counsellingsituations, with a number of different counselling goals.Some clients will visit a counsellor for preventive counselling. Preventivecounselling means giving your client information on how to prevent him .or herself from being infected with HIV, and to practise safe sex.Other clients might come to you for pre-test or post-test counselling. .Pre-test counselling takes place before your client has an HIV test, andpost-test counselling takes place when you give your client the HIV testresult.Supportive counselling means helping your client deal with the manyworries, anxieties and challenges he or she may have as a result of livingwith HIV.If your client is pregnant and taking treatment for HIV and AIDS,she might visit you for adherence counselling. Adherence counsellingmeans helping clients to take their treatment correctly every day.For more information about different kinds of HIV counselling, youcan read SAT’s HIV Counselling Series 6: Basic AIDS CounsellingGuidelines.The aim of counselling is to help someone work through a problem on hisor her own.
What is counselling?Counselling IS:listening actively to a client;giving a client space to talk about his or her problem;helping a client understand his or her problem;giving a client correct and appropriate information;helping a client make an informed decision;helping a client to understand the results of that decision;helping a client recognise and build on his or her own strengths.Counselling IS NOT:telling a client what to do;making decisions for a client;judging a client for his or her behaviour or cultural and .religious beliefs;blaming a client;arguing with a client;telling a client what you would do if you were him or her;making a client depend on you for advice and solutions.Counselling is helping a person find the solution to his or her ownproblem. It is not telling someone what you would do in his or hersituation.Skills and attitudes needed to be a treatmentcounsellorTo be an effective counsellor you need to:show respect for your client and other people;take responsibility for what you do or say to your client;listen actively;know your limits as a counsellor;be honest and trustworthy;not judge anyone;be patient and compassionate;be able to leave your own worries behind, and focus on your client;be empathetic.You also need to know your own cultural, personal or religious beliefs aroundHIV and pregnancy. You need to think about how these beliefs might affectyour opinion. Some people might believe that it is a woman’s duty to havechildren; others might believe it is a woman’s choice to have children. Somepeople might believe that termination of pregnancy is wrong, and otherpeople might think that giving birth by Caesarean section is wrong.To be an effective counsellor you also need to be knowledgeable about HIVand AIDS, and pregnancy. You also need to know when to refer your clientto someone else. Referring a client means giving him or her the contactdetails of another counsellor, health worker or helper. This person maybe able to help more effectively than you can.The second part of this book will give you some important informationabout pregnancy and the prevention of parent-to-child transmission(PPTCT). You need to have the correct information to be able to guideyour clients to make a decision.RememberMedical science is always making new discoveries and inventing newtests, producing new drugs and finding out more about PPTCT. As acounsellor you must read and research as much as you can, to find outthe latest information. This will mean you are always up to date, andcan give your clients accurate information. You also need to look afteryour own health and emotions, so that you have enough strength andenergy to care about your clients.
Page 1 and 2: SATSouthern AfricanAIDS TrustSuppor
Page 3 and 4: ForewordTh. is.is.the.thirteenth.pu
Page 5: IntroductionThis book has been writ
Page 9 and 10: Asking questionsWhen you ask questi
Page 11 and 12: Conducting a counselling sessionBef
Page 13 and 14: As a counsellor, it is important to
Page 15 and 16: Why test for HIV before conception?
Page 17 and 18: Prevention of MTCTPMTCT during preg
Page 19 and 20: As a counsellor it is important to
Page 21 and 22: The fear of domestic violence is on
Page 23: SAT’s HIV Counselling SeriesThis

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