The last year will be remembered for a long time. The effects of Covid-19 are present in every part of the world. So, nothing was different for the Tapologo HIV/AIDS Programme in South Africa.
COREAM supporters and followers know that Redemptorist Kevin Dowling was Bishop of Rustenburg until recent months. Bishop Kevin Dowling is the founder of the Tapalogo Initiative. Bishop Kevin remains Chair of the Programme.
With the 2nd Wave of Covid-19 changing Lockdown Regulations and Restrictions, the Tapologo Outreach Programme had to adjust to these changes. This affected the Home Based Care (HBC) and Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC) Programmes.
With great Commitment, Tapologo helped the Department of Health, by providing 1,976 screening Covid-19 Interventions for the General Public. Covid-19 Relief Funding was vital to minimize the effect of Covid on HIV and TB, as for ensuring help and service is still being provided.
Despite the heavy effect the pandemic had on the Programme, the Outreach Team was still able to undergo nearly 2,000 Counselling and Testing Interventions for HIV, following Covid Screening Guidelines. Furthermore, the Team enabled continued services for patients in need of care and introduced Q&A sessions on Covid-19 in the I-Act and peer Support Groups. These sessions included Education about misinformation in context with Covid as discussions about rising Gender Based Violence issues (GBV) in context with the pandemic.
The funding was also essential for the highest risks in the communities, such as Nutrition Supply. That way, 2,235 meal supplements and 7,099 food plates were distributed to ART Clinics and OVC Centres. The Supplements are a continuing support for everyone in need.
Tapologo’s staff are at all time fully equipped against Covid-19, following the Health Guidelines and being trained on alert notification procedures.
With the support of SERVE, Misean Cara and Redemptorist International Solidarity (RIS), Tapologo is continuingly helping in the fight against the pandemic and any pandemic in the future. To really make a difference, Health Care must meet “where they, the people are”.
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