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Volunteering with HIV/AIDS Patients in Ghana

Volunteers now have the opportunity to work with a pioneering HIV/AIDS program in Ghana. As a volunteer you will not only learn about the HIV/AIDS situation in Africa and the stigma surrounding this virus, but will also get to observe and work directly with patients who are suffering.

With an increase in the number of AIDS cases Ghana has been forced to respond to this issue and is now working toward finding a lasting solution. The goal is to prevent new HIV infections as well as to mitigate the socioeconomic and psychological effects of HIV/AIDS on individuals, communities, and the nation.

One of the hospitals working toward achieving this goal is the Police Hospital in Accra, a large government-run hospital opened in 1976. Projects Abroad has sent medical volunteers here for many years. The Police Hospital started its HIV/AIDS control program in 1998 and it has grown significantly over the past few years.

In order to prepare volunteers for what will be an eye-opening, emotional, and rewarding project, you will be provided with a three day training course on arrival in Ghana. This intense training will help you become familiar with counseling patients, testing for the virus, and spending time with people with HIV and AIDS.

HIV/AIDS Control Program in Ghana

After the initial training, volunteers work in a variety of different departments within the HIV/AIDS Control Program in the Police Hospital. These may include the following:

Counseling unit: This department helps prepare patients before they have an HIV/AIDS test

Anti-retro viral therapy clinic: For HIV/AIDS patients who are receiving treatment.

Prevention of mother to child transmission: Antenatal cases are counseled and screened for HIV/AIDS. Mothers who are infected follow a program to prevent them from infecting their unborn babies.

Diagnosis and testing unit: A special laboratory solely used for testing and diagnosing HIV/AIDS

The patients who have HIV/AIDS in the local community meet on a regular basis and volunteers spend time with these patients to help them understand more about the virus. Volunnteers also travel to schools to help or awareness regarding HIV/AIDS through outreach programs.

This project will often be emotionally demanding, but as a volunteer you will be working toward a worthwhile goal and alongside some inspiring people.

This project is available for less than a month if you don't have time to join us for a month or more. This project has been selected by our local colleagues as being suitable for shorter durations for both the host community and the volunteer. Although you will gain valuable cultural insight and work intensely within the local community please be aware that you may not be able to make the same impact as someone participating for a longer period.