Initiative

Moor at WHARF

A non-profit organisation, WHARF, aims to equip and train healthcare providers about HIV/AIDS specialisation and management, reports Nayantara Som.

It is a slap in the face to Indian healthcare when reports come trickling in that India has surpassed South Africa as the country with the most number of AIDS patients. According to UNAids, in July 2004, South Africa had the highest number of people with AIDS (almost 5.3 million), while 5.1 million of Indians were also infected with the virus. Analysts estimate this number to increase tenfold by 2010, if not curbed.

These figures trigger an alarm in the minds of the general people. Are our healthcare specialists and NGOs aware of the problem? Who should take the initiative to educate the general people about the dreaded disease?

Help from unexpected quarters

"Wockhardt as a corporate body wanted to be more socially responsible and thus WHARF was formed" - Nafisa Khorakiwala, WHARF Trustee and President

Realising the acute need for such facilities in India, Wockhardt and Harvard Medical International (HMI) came together in 2002 to form an NGO Wockhardt-Harvard Medical International HIV/AIDS Education and Research Foundation (WHARF).

A ready platform for clinicians, nurses, paramedics, and counsellors, WHARF helps them acquire knowledge in specialised areas. It has also become an institute in educating and creating awareness at the community level, grassroots level and the working populace in urban and semi-urban areas of India.

Says Nafisa Khorakiwala, WHARF Trustee and President, "Wockhardt as a corporate body wanted to be more socially responsible. We brainstormed and realised that the biggest threat facing us was HIV/AIDS."

Wockhardt's reasons for choosing to work in HIV/AIDS were primarily because the subject needed research and, moreover, a liaison with HMI enabled the company to avail of educational material, reasons Khorakiwala. In the four years since WHARF's existence, the duo have trained around 3,000 doctors. It ensures that training programmes are also conducted every month.

Train the Trainer

"In a survey conducted by us, we noticed that only 20 per cent of doctors were specialists in HIV/AIDS" - Dr Deepak Batura, Founding Faculty, WHARF

But this was not enough. There was an urgency for an initiative that was more scientific and structured in its approach. WHARF, hence, developed the 'Train the Trainer' programme. "Currently, we have three training programmes - basic training, advanced training and community based programmes," says Khorakiwala. Basic training involves enlightening health providers about the basic issues pertaining to HIV/AIDS, which calls for sessions on epidemiology, counselling and home-based care. It is a one-day programme followed by four follow-up sessions, where specialists are taken on a field trip. Normally, a group of 30-50 people attend the course and three faculty members from WHARF conduct the course. Says Dr Deepak Batura, Founding Faculty, WHARF, "In the one-day programme, there are role plays, didactic lectures delivered by faculty members, case studies evaluated and follow-up sessions." Simultaneously, a journal and a research project have to be submitted to the faculty members.

For the advanced training programme, a new set of health practitioners enrol for the programme (members from the basic level can enrol for this level, but it is not mandatory). The advanced programme is conducted mainly for seasoned practising physicians with some experience in the field of HIV/AIDS.

The USP of these programmes is that it is mandatory for each participant to train five more people, thus making it a self-evolving and an ongoing process. Since the first programme in December 2002, which trained 41 care-givers, WHARF has come a long way.

At the community level, training programmes are conducted mainly for non-allopathic physicians and doctors. "In a survey conducted by WHARF in Mumbai, it was noticed that only 20 per cent of doctors were specialists in HIV/AIDS. The same survey revealed that the remaining doctors, though not specialists had come across patients afflicted with HIV," points out Dr Batura.

WHARF Youth

WHARF Youth was initiated in 2005, which roped in college students from Mumbai to conduct awareness programmes not only in educational institutions but also in call centers. Currently, 50 WHARF Youth members conduct classes and plans are on the anvil to form groups in Delhi too.

The various training programmes of wharf

International Alliances

So what is HMI's role? It contributes with training and educational material. "The HMI faculty are here once every four months," says Khorakiwala. Moreover, for undertaking a research project or restructuring a module, consent and verification is a sine qua non from HMI.

Apart from HMI, WHARF has also tied up with a German-based organisation, Aktionsgemeinschaft Partner Indiens (API) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Along with UNDP, WHARF provides online counselling and treatment support on www.youandaids.org.

With API, which operates mainly in Jhabua (a district on the border of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan), it conducts awareness programmes for the auxiliary nurses, midwives and masses. (For more associations, see box)

Meanwhile, it has also been conducting research studies. The Indian faculty does all the legwork, while the HMI faculty gives its consent and modifies the content if need be.

Future Plans

Its work is not over. In future, WHARF intends to tie up with the Clinton Foundation as well as the Bill Gates Foundation for counselling and testing centres. Along with UNDP, WHARF is planning an online training course. "We are concentrating on a new module for our training programme to be launched in February, this year" informs Khorakiwala.

nayantara.som@expressindia.com