 Interview with Ana Sambimbya, Nurse, Chevron
Prior to joining Chevron, had you worked at other companies that did not have superlative HIV/AIDS workplace programs? Please describe what that was like and if having worked at a company that ignored the disease made you particularly interested in coming to Chevron. Chevron is the first company that I have worked for that is concerned with the prevention of HIV/AIDS. It would be good for other companies to follow this noble example, as this would help to reduce the number of victims of this virus/disease. As a urse, it has been very rewarding and encouraging to help my patients with HIV and I am very proud to work for the company. Chevron firmly states that it will not conduct pre-employment HIV testing. Can you explain why this is important and how it affects worker morale? It is a very positive attitude becauses human being have social, psychological, emotional, personal and family needs. If one denies a person employment just because s/he carries the virus then one is indirectly denying the right to life and contributing to the deterioration of the health of that person. We encourage others to take the test and, as you are all aware, the virus is only transmitted through contaminated blood, mother/child transmission and sexual contact. And it’s a fact that if controlled, one can live for 10, 20, 30 or even more years. Additionally, tests should be carried out in a confidential and voluntary manner according to the law in force in the country. What role do you play in Chevron’s program? Right now I’m an Educator of Couples and a Counsellor and Trainer in the Programme "Life This Way". I participated as a monitor in the training of Educators of Couples and Counsellors of the Company. I have been a member of the Task Force since the implementation of the programme "Life this Way" in Angola. I have been working as a voluntary counsellor since 1999 at a time when it was taboo to speak about the issue. I counsel on testing and have nothing else to offer except my advice, as one is not yet talking of the treatment, which almost made me give up. As an obstetrics nurse I advise HIV-positive pregnant women and their partners and their new-born babies to have a test by the age of 18 months, in order to certify whether they are infected or not. This is not an easy task because even if I don’t want to, as a human being I often end up becoming emotionally involved. When Chevron launched the programme "Life this Way" in 2003, I felt as if I had won the lottery. I wasted no time or opportunity to speak about HIV, particularly to young people and adolescents. Apart from the sad feelings, I’ve also had some very happy moments when, for example, I receive negative results, particularly of babies whose parents are HIV-positive. Last week, I carried out a test on the last baby of all those that I had been following-up and none of them was positive. I have already counselled hundreds and tested others but I must admit that I am frightened whenever I have to do these tests - after all it is the only way of knowing our blood status. How does Chevron raise awareness about HIV/AIDS? Chevron has made voluntary counselling services available in all Chevron clinics throughout Angola. We counsel the workers and their dependents to adhere to this programme, in order to help them change their behaviour and to better plan for a safer life, helping them to evaluate the risk of sexually transmitted diseases and clarifying any doubts whilst providing emotional support to protect their health. The Company has organized various events–recreational and cultural activities that place emphasis on the importance of HIV prevention. How does the workplace program fight stigma and discrimination? Are employees comfortable revealing their HIV status? To prevent stigma and discrimination at the workplace, we have adopted a training system in which discrimination and stigma are widely discussed to enable everyone to try and put themselves in the place of the person affected with this disease. Whenever possible, bring along an HIV-positive member of the community to share the experiences of an affected person. This has proved to be very positive. As yet, I do not know of any employee who has revealed his/her blood status because the whole process is treated in a confidential manner. Chevron’s program places a strong emphasis on the community. How does the company make sure information reaches worker dependants and spouses? We disseminate information on HIV prevention to the community through cultural educational activities, seminars organized by the Churches and schools and carried out by Couple Counsellors. We carried out activities on International Day of the Child (1 June 2006) and on Africa Day (May 2007) at the workers housing complex in Luanda and Cabinda. I personally take part in the organization of these activities and often as the leader, particularly in activities relating to World Aids Day (1 December). During social activities in the community (soccer games, St Sylvester race, etc.), we participate and take the opportunity to distribute our publicity material in the form of pamphlets, brochures, t-shirts, caps, etc. We are thinking of preparing some of the workers’ dependents to be Couple Educators in the communities where they live. |
