| Demystifying traditional health practices in the corporate world |
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The workshop held by Global Business Coalition (GBC) in August, in partnership with SABCOHA, aimed to demystify traditional health practice among the corporate world, specifically to show how culture and traditional ways link with the impact of HIV among the family and community members, in order for the corporate world to understand how these impacts on employees' well being and the work place.
At the start of the year, Carol O'Brien of the GBC for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria approached the SRH Training Team of the HIV Management Cluster of the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit (RHRU) for a collaborative activity to address the issue on traditional health practice in the work place. While networking with RHRU directors, GBC learned that RHRU conducts HIV training program for Traditional Health Practitioners (THPs). On the 14th of August 2007, at the Anglo American Building in Johannesburg, forty corporate individuals attended the workshop. Carol O'Brien, director for GBC Southern Africa and Brad Mears, CEO of SABCOA gave the welcoming remarks. Dr Vivian Black, the Project Leader of Maternal Health of RHRU HIV Management Cluster and the current WHO Advisor on Research Priorities on Contraception and HIV in South Africa, set the tone of the workshop with her opening remarks on the current HIV scenario globally and nationally. The presenters were a panel of practicing traditional health practitioners and medical health practitioners, lead by Dr Trevor Majoro, an allopathic doctor who embraced his traditional healing calling in 2001. He discussed about the different types of South African traditional health practice and went on to share his journey as a THP. Rowena Ngubeni, an RHRU trainer and one of the prime originators of this workshop, discussed working with THPs; while Martha Mongoya, a traditional healer and Gauteng DOH THP coordinator, briefly described traditional rites and practices that has implications to working individuals. Dr Majoro, a member of the national task team working on the THP bill, also gave an outline of the current status of the bill as well as some of its major thrusts. Some of the issues highlighted during the interactive discussion of the panel and the audience were the pending Bill on THP, employee absenteeism, clarification on some traditional practices, and potential working collaboration with THPs to maximize HIV and STI prevention and general health education, among others. Claire Mooideen, head of the RHRU SRH Training Team, in her synthesis of the workshop reiterated the importance of integrated efforts from all sectors of the society to combat the HIV epidemic. - RHRU HIV Management Cluster Click here to view the presentations: |