Johns Hopkins University uses TeachAids software to educate HIV-positive adolescents in Ethiopia
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have been using the TeachAids software to facilitate their health outreach sessions at local Youth Centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
With over one million people infected with HIV nationally and limited access to resources, thousands of children contract HIV from their mother every year in Ethiopia. Funded by PEPFAR, the Johns Hopkins Technical Support for the Ethiopian HIV/ART Initiative (TSEHAI) has established Youth Centers for HIV-positive adolescents to teach these young patients about their virus and create a community of hope.
“Our Youth Centers strive to provide an empowering education for all HIV-positive children. However, even the basic aspects of the virus are quite abstract and difficult to understand. With brilliant simplicity, the TeachAids animations have helped demystify HIV’s interaction with the human body for hundreds of kids here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.”
– Ross Kornberg, Research Assistant, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
The TSEHAI project has initiated Youth Centers at Black Lion Hospital and the All Africa Leprosy, Tuberculosis, and Rehabilitation Training Center (ALERT) in order to establish a crucial support structure for HIV-positive children. In addition to addressing the countless social obstacles that confront HIV-positive children, the project seeks to educate recently disclosed adolescents about HIV’s underlying biological mechanisms. In an environment with high levels of social stigma and taboo surrounding HIV and AIDS, continuing education for newly disclosed adolescents remains largely unavailable. Furthermore, social seclusion and the death of family members leave many of these children without a support system to help them develop healthy and hopeful living habits.
The Youth Centers employed the TeachAids animated software to educate over 200 adolescents about their health status. With the aid of our animated materials, doctors and nurses lead comprehensive and medically-accurate discussions about HIV while fostering an interactive learning environment that promotes strong social bonds.
TeachAids is honored to support the efforts of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to improve the education and living habits of HIV-positive adolescents. We look forward to our continuing collaborations in their pursuit of advancing public health efforts globally.
Photo: Youth at All Africa Leprosy, Tuberculosis, and Rehabilitation Training Center in Ethiopia learning from the TeachAids software.