Kenya has an estimated 1.5 million people with HV or aids – about 6.3% of the population. 80,000 Kenyans died of aids in 2009. There are 1.2 million children orphaned by the disease.
There are twice as many women in Kenya who are HIV positive than men. Young woman ages 15-24 are 4 times more likely to become infected than their male counterparts. Women are far more likely to agree to testing then men.
Every year more than 114,00 babies are exposed to HIV, and at least 46,000 are born HIV-positive. Kenya has more than 4,000 health facilities that offer PMTCT services (“Prevention of Mother-to Child Transmission”),but more than half of all pregnant women deliver at home.
PMTCT includes the use of ART (anti-retroviral therapy) to prevent the spread of HIV from the mother to the child, but the drugs must be administered to the babies starting by birth. Many mothers seek post-delivery health care too late for the therapy to be effective.
Ray of Hope has a community of women who are HIV positive and on daily regimens to keep the disease at bay. They initially came to the clinic ready to die and devoid of any hope. Ray of Hope not only administers the rigorous drug therapy, it helps them to find ways to survive and reasons to go on.
It looks like a nice group of women. Are they singing in the bottom photo?
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