AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar: WORLD-Women Organised to Respond to Life Threatening Diseases

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar: WORLD-Women Organised to Respond to Life Threatening Diseases

WORLD-Women Organised to Respond to Life Threatening Diseases

Training & Education director of WORLD visits BDC Research Center
6th December was aspecial day for HIV positive women of Amritsar.Ms.Shailini eddens from WORLD,Oakland,California alongwith Mr.Clayton Bond,Cultural secretary,american embassy and his assistant Mr.Ramesh Jain visited and interected with HIV positive women of Amritsar.
They also addressed airmen's wives in the evening.
The visit to DR.Bharti's center and meeting Ravi Saini another activist by these dignitories will go a long way in the fight against HIV especially for women
Bharti

Shalini Eddens,Clayton Bond and RameshJain;s visit

 

AAG Activist visiting US

Visit to USA
Hi folks
Dr.Bharti Rakesh and Prabha are likely to be in USA during the last fortnight of december till first week January.Those interested in helping HIVers of Punjab,please be in touch
Bharti

Help to HIV'ERS

It was a flop but we are not disheartened

The mountview exhibition was a flop,still we are not disheartened.The HIV made suits now will be sold thru my clinic.Anyone willing to donate this festive season,please contact me 9814044213.
The ARV centres roll out by NACO including one at Amritsar deserves quodos.I wish they involve PP's like me too and provide ARV and ATT at my center thru their govt agency ofcourse.This will help more especially those who want to remain anonymous and avoid going to govt set ups.
tring tring---Madam Sujata Rao,hope you will listen this time
Dr.Rakesh Bharti

come one come all

Hotel MountView,Chandigarh
May I invite all philanthropists to come and see the works of PLHA women in Hotel Mountview,Chandigarh on 23rd and 24th of this month.
Prabha Bharti-project coordinator has been successfull in getting few suits painted by HIV females and widows and would like to sell them for charity.The profits will go to the benefit of treatment of poor HIVers.The cost of each month's treatment in INR is 1100 minimum.
RB

Dr.Bharti Invited to China

From: "Yolanda Wang" ▼
22 Aug 06 07:51 AM Previous Mail Next Mail
To: "rakeshbharti1"
Subject: Learn Latest Advances At World Aids Day-China, 2006 ▼
WORLD AIDS DAY-CHINA, 2006 Time: Dec. 1-3, 2006 Main Conference: Tientsin (Tianjin) TEDA Convention Center, ChinaMeeting Website:http://www.aidsday2006.org-



Dear Dr. Rakesh Bharti,
Currently, we are involved in organizing World Aids Day-China, 2006(WADC, 2006), which will be held during December 1-3 in Tientsin(Tianjin), China. This is a technological, commonweal, benevolent campaign as an echo to global anti-HIV/AIDS action. On behalf of organizing committee of World Aids Day-China, 2006, I have great honor and privilege to welcome you to be one of the Speakers of World Aids Day-China, 2006. HIV today is a tremendous threat to men, women and children on all continents around the world. So we propose to call for international institutions or organizations extensively to engage in more anti-AIDS projects in China and set comprehensive programs on international scientific and technological perspectives by means of World AIDS Day platform that was promoted by WHO as the AIDS conference. As everyone knows, science and technology play the key roles in control and prevention of AIDS epidemic. By integrating current global strategies in anti-AIDS fields, such an event may generate a new pathway for our societies to find solutions in fighting AIDS epidemic and call for global responses to HIV/AIDS. We believe the campaign may help our societies in a more practical way. We are currently organizing an extensive program which attracted a lot of supports from UN, International, Regional or Oversea Organizations, Universities, institutes, etc. and you are welcome to visit our website at:http://www.whts.org/aids/en/index.htm for more details. Also Dr. Avram Hershko, the Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry in 2004 and Dr. Rulf M. Zinkernagel, the Nobel Prize Laureate in Medicine in 1996, and Dr. Richard J. Roberts, The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1993 will join us as VIPs and offer us the wonderful Lectures. As you are an expert on anti-HIV research, your participation in campaign will highlight this grand event, the success of the campaign will depend heavily on your efforts. We will witness this landmark campaign and will be proud of the attendee for it.
Sincerely yoursï
Yolanda Wang
Program CoordinatorE-mail:yolanda@whts.org yama@whts.org
Organizing Committee of World Aids Day-2006,
China 26 Gaoneng Street, Room 404, Dalian High-tech Zone, Dalian, LN 116025, China Tel: +0086-411-84799479Fax: +0086-411-84799629

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar: These are the works of HIV Patient

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar: These are the works of HIV Patient

These are the works of HIV Patient

If you like these then place your orders please and give them a chance to live
Prabha Bharti

AMDAANA President appeals to 75 batch mates of GMC

Quoted here is a letter from Dr.Ripu Arora ,Presdent Arora written to one of your truly,
This is for every Amritsar medical college graduate to take note of it.
Thanks
Dr.Rakesh Bharti
From :

Sent :
Sunday, August 13, 2006 3:47 PM
To :
rakeshbharti1@hotmail.com, vermaarun00@gmail.com, sspalia@hotmail.com, akaleyejal@yahoo.co.in
CC :
vermanick@hotmail.com, rkmehta52@yahoo.com, mskanwar53@rediffmail.com, vineykumar@hotmail.com, mann@pobox.com, hspuar@yahoo.com, kashmir@mako.com, batrarajinder@yahoo.co.in, schawla42@hotmail.com, susheel_mohindru@yahoo.co.in, vinaybhalla@ntlworld.com, rverma@mcclinic.com, sukhdevbhargava@comcast.net, rmehta@ucsd.edu, santparkashsinghdhillon@yahoo.co.in, Singhajinder@aol.com, GBNREG@aol.com, DrISingh@aol.com, Kherahome@aol.com, jennymultani@yahoo.com, drnkbhatia@yahoo.com, yajuarya@yahoo.com, drmschawla@hotmail.com
Subject :
Re: :Re: Re :Re: class of 1975 chat and news






Inbox
Hi all friends
I hope all of us look in this Blog, Bharti has sent,

Hi Bharti
I read your blog, and it is very impressive.I learnt a lot about you and your credentials.
It is great to know that you are involved and committed in such a needy area of public awareness and fundraiser.
When you come here ,I shall buy a Salwaar Kammeez from your foundation.
I suggest that for next AMDAANA meeting you come to S.Carolina.
we can set up a booth for you to display some pictures and educational and fundraising material.I can try to fit in a 10 minutes slide show for you, and hopefully get AMDAANA members involved in this donation.
We can discuss during your trip here. If there is a possibility,I would like AMDAANA as association to support this very good cause on annual basis.It needs coordination,convincing the idea to AMDAANA gen body, and few volunteers here to help raise funds.I will be happy to volunteer myself for this.
Looking forward to your visit here.
love to all
ripu arora

Wake up Call for the group Members

Attention Dr.Ravi Saini and Others
Here is the reply by Mr.A.K Khanna,Executive Director, Emcure Pharma which needs our attention and seriuos thought.Send me your plan ASAP
From: "Arun" To: "rakesh bharti" , "Arun Khanna" Date: Wed, 9 Aug 2006 02:48:07 +0000 GMTSubject: Re: AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar
"Dr Bharti . I am very impressed with your commitment . Your comments on AAG sight noted.We are keen to work on Taal Amritasar project immediately . Pl send us your proposal for our immediate action .I am in Indonesia at present . Mr Sood can visit Amritsar for this purpose .Once I am back in India I will speak to you Regards."
A K khanna
Sent from my BlackBerry® on Airtel

Dr.Ravi Saini

Introducing the widely travelled Active and one of the founder member of the Group
I take this oppurtunity to introduce my collegue and co founder of the group-Dr.Ravi Saini.
ravi Saini in his own words
" me and Dr. Bharti founded this group together with one mine jounrelist friend khushwant who unfortunately died few years back in an accident . AAG was founded in 1992 and I have read so many papers of AAG in different parts of world,"
Contributions of Ravi can be found on the web in various international conferences.
he shares the pride of being leading HIV specialists in the area with me.
salutations to a great friend

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar: Another weapon in Fight Against HIV/AIDS

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a603019.html

Another weapon in Fight Against HIV/AIDS

Atazanavir
The molecule was introduced in India by Emcure.
A function for this was held in New Delhi on 5th August for the same.
This is a good second line option with less cardiotoxicity but the disadvantage of causing "Yellow Eyes" due to increased indirect serum bilirubin.
Should always be used with another PI boosted( as is done in other PI's now)-Ritonavir 100 mg bd.
Dose of Atazanavir is 3 tablets once a day.
Hope for ARV experienced patients.
Another matter which was discussed by Bharti with Emcure Chief was to start a TAAL in Amritsar-a pharmacy for PLHA of PLHA by PLHA. PLHA ,Amritsar will surely work on it and try to be a part of Haath Se haath Mila Chain
Bharti

They Speak for themselves

She wants to say something

This child is representative of many who need your attention

KOBE Conference

The Silent Sufferers too need Attention-Amritsar, HIV andWidows/Orphans. In Developing countries like India where there are 5.1 millionHIV patients already there seems to be no stopping this pandemic if wekeep overlooking the social needs of its silent sufferers. The presentscenario of gender biases will become worse with the increasing numberof silent sufferers of HIV the widows and orphans. BDC research center anextension of AIDS Awareness Group (AAG) is involved in care of HIVfamilies for last three years. Its area of work is in a holy city ofhistorical and religious sentiments (city of Golden temple-the highestseat of Sikhs- a minority ethnic group of India) .It is a district of3 M population thriving on the business of textile, dry fruits andtransport. Amritsar is situated on border of two countries India andPakistan. Drug trafficking is another menace of the area besidestrucking. In a retrospective analysis of 180 HIV families under itscare, BDC research center has found some startling facts that ought tobe shared with the planners of health care at all levels. There are 40.5% women andchildren sufferers.58 are women patients (32.2%)and 16 children (3females, 1 is thalassaemic). Three fourth of women sufferers needingtreatment are being denied the same for simple reasons of gender biasand economy playing their part together. Amongst children none of thefemale child is offered treatment by their families, for males thepercentage is 47 who are being denied treatment. Male bread earnersmainly involved in trucking profession usually bring HIV home, but big
spouses who cannot dare ask for protective measures and the worsthappens, newborns with disease come on this earth. Punjab is a state(Amritsar is a city of it) where the number HIV victims are officiallytoo low to draw attention to be a part of 3/5 initiative .Thesufferings of other HIV victims is no less. 71% are young and breadearners, majority are Sikhs (73.52%). 72% belong to poor strata ofsociety (monthly income <40$). The route of transmission in majoritywas sex but the number of persons acquiring through unknown modes(needles of so called health care providers mainly) was no less (!5.2%). IVDU\'s are 5%. Avertage viral load in patients who could affordit (36%) was74838 and cd4 481 at the start of treatment.34% had Tbbefore the start of treatment.2 had concomitant infection of HCV and20% had an episode of herpes zoster. majority of those who couldafford treatment (36%) asked for the cheapest combination ofAZT+3TC+NVP/3TC+D4T+NVP@ 38-51$ per month. One boy succumbed to theside effects (lactic acidosis). Other finding worth sharing is that40-70% on ARV failed to achieve complete viral suppression despitemonths of treatment. To conclude the situation is turning to begrave as is rightly assessed by international authorities but thelocal authorities are still thinking of IEC .It is time for a quickmarch to stop the progress of HIV in its tracks .One suggestion thecenter above has is to involve all types of health care providers inthis fight against the silent killer.",0]
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business tycoons are no exception. Virus is silently passed on to thespouses who cannot dare ask for protective measures and the worsthappens, newborns with disease come on this earth. Punjab is a state(Amritsar is a city of it) where the number HIV victims are officiallytoo low to draw attention to be a part of 3/5 initiative .Thesufferings of other HIV victims is no less. 71% are young and breadearners, majority are Sikhs (73.52%). 72% belong to poor strata ofsociety (monthly income <40$). The route of transmission in majoritywas sex but the number of persons acquiring through unknown modes(needles of so called health care providers mainly) was no less (!5.2%). IVDU's are 5%. Avertage viral load in patients who could affordit (36%) was74838 and cd4 481 at the start of treatment.34% had Tbbefore the start of treatment.2 had concomitant infection of HCV and20% had an episode of herpes zoster. majority of those who couldafford treatment (36%) asked for the cheapest combination ofAZT+3TC+NVP/3TC+D4T+NVP@ 38-51$ per month. One boy succumbed to theside effects (lactic acidosis). Other finding worth sharing is that40-70% on ARV failed to achieve complete viral suppression despitemonths of treatment. To conclude the situation is turning to begrave as is rightly assessed by international authorities but thelocal authorities are still thinking of IEC .It is time for a quickmarch to stop the progress of HIV in its tracks .One suggestion thecenter above has is to involve all types of health care providers inthis fight against the silent killer.
we were there too

Double Tre(ou)ble-any suggestions

HIV+HCV survivor now wants a baby
This man had HCV and HIV positive,suffered from cryptococcal meningitis,had a narrow brush with death but won over.This was year 2004. After survival he married his fiancee(not telling her the truth of his ailment) and now since he is clinically and otherwise(Lab parameters) sound,his expectations from life and wife have doubled.Young man wants to have a child.He has read about sperm washing and all.His concern is how to fight out both HIV and HCV,concern is not to pass on the HIV to wife and child by PTCT measures,concern is not pass on HCV too.
Any suggestions are welcome (should include practical things and costs involved).They can be sent to me at rakesh.bharti1 (at)gmail(dot)com
Dr.Rakesh Bharti
BDC Research Center,
27-D,Sant Avenue,
The Mall,Amritsar
Punjab,143001,INDIA

In Bangkok conference

15thInternational AIDS Conference
Bangkok, Thailand - July 11-16, 2004
Living well with HIV/AIDS at home in resource poor settings of Amritsar.
Int Conf AIDS 2004 Jul 11-16; 15:(abstract no. B10002)Bharti R, Bharti PBDC Research Ceter,AAG, Amritsar, India
ISSUES: HIV already has 4.6 m victims (Officially) in India and everyone in authority or otherwise knows that managing these victims and their problems by government efforts alone is like trying to reach moon on foot. Despite the increasing numbers the basic issues remain to be solved. The issues are-are these numbers correct, how to get correct data, how these victims can be looked after best with minimum efforts on govt part.
DESCRIPTION: Bharti Derma Care Research Center is an extension of a well-known registered NGO, AIDS Awareness Group (AAG), Amritsar and is providing care to more then 190 HIV patients and their families for last more than two years. This is a study based on authors experience with these HIV patients. Lessons learnt: Although official figures for Amritsar is +1200 HIV cases as on date yet none of the 190 patients seen by the author are on record anywhere. Males were three times the females (3:1), 71% youth and bread earners.73.52% Sikhs 72% from the poor strata (monthly income<40$) href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/uspdi/202602.html">AZT/D4T+3TC+NVP. Costing about 1$ per day, 20% had to switch over to cheaper drugs or stop treatment for economic reasons. While the developed are talking about drug resistance we the developing cannot even afford Cd4 tests (20$) at regular intervals of 3 months even.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Involve Private practitioners, give them incentives, and gather data from testing laboratories and pharmacies selling ARV. Encourage people to seek help from PPs also provided??? The home care settings with cushions of joint families is the best answer, provided a good counseling & continuous counseling of whole family is done
Keywords: AEGIS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, HIV, HIV Seropositivity, HIV Infections, Poverty, Health Resources, Zidovudine, Stavudine, Viral Load, Lamivudine, Housing, Anti-HIV Agents, HIV-1, India, Humans, Female, Male, economics, organization & administration Download PDF of this abstract.-->
040711 B10002
Copyright © 2004 - International AIDS Society (IAS). Reproduction of this abstract (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the IAS.

some of our group's research papers

//


10th International AIDS Conference
Yokohama, Japan — Aug 7-12, 1994
Unaware rural collegiates are more helpful.
Int Conf AIDS 1994 Aug 7-12; 10:345 (abstract no. PD0560) Bharti R, Singh HP, Saini R, Singh GS;
OBJECTIVE: To develop a dialogue with college and Uni. Students of Amritsar (Punjab, India) and evaluate their awareness & helpfulness to spread the work of knowledge about AIDS.
METHODS: AIDS AWARENESS GROUP (A.A.G.), Amritsar, with the help of some other NGO'S, arranged lectures by experts in various colleges (rural & urban) and various deptts. Of the local Guru Nanak Dev University.
RESULTS: Whereas the students of the university and urban colleges were more aware, the rural area students did not know much about AIDS. The unaware rural collegiates were more desirous of becoming our message spreaders after acquiring the knowledge. DISCUSSION &
CONCLUSIONS: As majority of Amritsar's HIV patients today are ruralites, we, the AAG members, believe that more stress for education & utilisation of rural collegiates, is the need of the hour.
Keywords: AEGIS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Students, HIV Infections, Universities, Schools, India, Human, ICA10 940807 PD0560
Copyright © 1994 - International AIDS Society (IAS). Reproduction of this abstract (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the IAS.

//


10th International AIDS Conference
Yokohama, Japan — Aug 7-12, 1994
Unaware rural collegiates are more helpful.
Int Conf AIDS 1994 Aug 7-12; 10:345 (abstract no. PD0560) Bharti R, Singh HP, Saini R, Singh GS;
OBJECTIVE: To develop a dialogue with college and Uni. Students of Amritsar (Punjab, India) and evaluate their awareness & helpfulness to spread the work of knowledge about AIDS.
METHODS: AIDS AWARENESS GROUP (A.A.G.), Amritsar, with the help of some other NGO'S, arranged lectures by experts in various colleges (rural & urban) and various deptts. Of the local Guru Nanak Dev University.
RESULTS: Whereas the students of the university and urban colleges were more aware, the rural area students did not know much about AIDS. The unaware rural collegiates were more desirous of becoming our message spreaders after acquiring the knowledge. DISCUSSION &
CONCLUSIONS: As majority of Amritsar's HIV patients today are ruralites, we, the AAG members, believe that more stress for education & utilisation of rural collegiates, is the need of the hour.
Keywords: AEGIS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Students, HIV Infections, Universities, Schools, India, Human, ICA10 940807 PD0560
Copyright © 1994 - International AIDS Society (IAS). Reproduction of this abstract (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the IAS.

One year ago

The Tribune Carried this story one year ago
AIDS spreading its tentacles in Punjab villages Ashok Sethi
The AIDS Awareness Group (AAG) here has been grappling with alarming AIDS scenario, especially in rural areas. The Secretary and HIV expert of the AAG and Medical Officer, Department of Skin, Dr Ravi Saini, along with Dr Rakesh Bharti, has been organising various workshops and seminars to educate the most vulnerable section of the society, especially truckers.
According to experts, the dreaded disease was spreading viciously in the villages, as proper awareness had not been created at the grassroots level.
The first few cases of the full-blown AIDS in the rural areas adjoining the city were reported during the early 1990s. Quacks, who take people for a ride, add to the dismal scenario. Dr Saini said at present there were effective drugs available for helping the AIDS patients lead a normal life. These drugs were affordable, too. But stigma about AIDS kept a large number of people, especially poor and illiterate, away from hospitals.
A random survey carried out by the AAG has found that 40 per cent of the transport workers have unprotected sex. In most of the cases, prejudice and ignorance were found to be responsible for this. The AAG was funded by the British High Commission to prepare a report on the truckers.
Dr Saini said another serious concern was that drug addicts were contracting this disease through the use of unsterilised needles. Recently, a case of 70-year-old patient with full-blown AIDS was reported. It was found that the patient had contracted AIDS through the use of unsterilised needles. "Another factor which has caught the doctors unawares is the growing trend of extramarital affairs," added Dr Saini.
The medical fraternity, too, needed to brace itself up, according to Dr Saini. Still a large number of doctors in hospitals and nursing homes shunned the HIV patients. The doctors needed to have a positive approach, he added.

it was pk who wrote that betrayal story

the betrayal story continues
First of all let me rectify the mistake of not identifying the narrator of that story-it was pk ,her blog on healthand humanrights in Punjab had it and i only copied and posted.Sorry pk
More importanatly now the lady has turned to be HIV negative and the couple wants a child.USFD does not approve of semen wash etc. Europe has seen lots of such successes.Any guidance,research in ASIA and India are welcomed to be shared and help this young lady who wants to compensate her loss of faith with gain of motherhood
Bharti

Will the betrayals become common?

A young woman's betrayal
This morning I met a young woman who had just found out about her husband's HIV positive status four days earlier. She had found out accidently. Her husband had gone for a lab test and one afternoon she decided to go pick the results on her own, as a favor to her husband. There they handed over his CD4 lab results and she learned that her husband is HIV positive.The couple has only been married for a year. She is only 22 years old and appears delicate and innocent, a typical young South Asian bride. Her husband belongs to one of the richest families in the city and had known about his HIV status well before his marriage. He has been on medicines for well over a year. When he announced to the physician that he was going to get married, he assured his doctor that he had informed his future wife of his HIV status. A few days ago the truth came out that this wasn't accurate information.She had come to the clinic yesterday, with her husband. He sat quietly on a bench across from the physician's desk, while she sat close to the doctor. They had both come to the clinic because they want to have a child. Emotions were high during the session Dr. Bharti held with the young woman. She was stiff with anger and two or three times repeated "Shouldn't he have told me before?" The physician acknowledged her sense of pain and anger. The husband sat quietly and listened as the physician tried to cover the wide range of information that was neccessary to cover. He tried to emphasize to her that she first needs time to come to terms with learning about her husband's HIV status and his (and his family's) dishonesty in not sharing this information with her before marrying her and denying her the information for the past year of her marriage.Today she arrived back in the clinic with her husband in tow, and resolutely replied that on the question of whether to have a child, "I've left it up to him to decide." In her next sentence, she said "There are no alternatives." In her conscious, she has decided that she wants to have a child with her husband, despite the risks that she may become infected and her child may also then become HIV positive.This young woman has many challenging decisions to make in the next few months. I was struck by the lack of response or responsibility that her husband displayed. The burden of the decisions and emotions have been squarely placed on her shoulders, while placing her in a precarious position if she decides to "stray" from her "wifely duties" to provide her husband and his family with a child. She is very young and from my observation, needs intense professional counselling in order to come to an independent decision that she will be confident she made without the influence of her husband or his family or a sense of guilt.This pressure of the social custom to have a child in many traditional societies is one reason that microbicides are a pressing need to the women of the world. This young woman is one story out of the millions of women around the world facing infection by the virus because the men they trust are not taking the confidence these women have in them seriously.

GOOD NEWS

It is almost here.
Yes . I understand very soon Amritsar will have an ART center.This was revealed to me by a dermatologist friend of mine from GMC,Amritsar.As per him it may start this week itself.
AIIMS,New Delhi ,however,announced it much earlier depending on paper information as narrated to meone of my patients.Authorities of AIIMS told this patient that why has she come so far as Amritsar also have a center where tests are done and ARV's are available.
I would love to ask my all patients to avail the facility thru phones and this Blog

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar

Testing Before Marriage
An interesting debate has started after Goa deciding to go for this testing and Many Punjab villages demanding the same.The general public in villages affected by the deadly virus looks for it but technically the proposition sounds unfair.
I invite comments
Dr.Rakesh Bharti

Male Sexual health and HIV in conservative Societies

Risks and Responsibilities on male Sexual health and HIV
I would love to hear on this topic with special reference to conservative societies like India,bangladesh,pakistan,nepal,Sri Lanka etc

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar

Request for helping the orphans of HIV in Punjab
This is to request the readers of this blog once again to help the HIV orphans.Right now we have 9 orphans under our care.Two are taken care off by one of the doctor doing his residency in Pittsberg for one year.Help for others will make life of these little flowers more fragerent.
The cost of traetment of one child is barely 12 dollars a month-you can add as many months to their lives as you wish.
The cheques are to be sent in the name of AIDS Awarenes Group,Amritsar.(Account payee) or in my name that is DR.Rakesh Bharti,Amritsar(A/Payee).
Detail stories of these HIV patients you will keep reading thru the eyes of an intern PK from USA,now a days with us.
Looking forward to your help
Dr.Rakesh Bharti

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar
Visit to A HIV victim's Family
Here is an account by a researcher from US now a days with us about her visit to a HIVer's family including a HIV born growing boy
My main objective in Tarn Taarn was to visit the home of an HIV patient, B. Singh. I first met this gentleman in the clinic. He is a farmer and lives in a village right outside of the city of Tarn Taarn. He mostly grows rice and vegetables.
His wife contracted HIV/AIDS during her pregnancy from a blood transfusion and subsequently, in her undetected stage, passed the virus on to her son. She gave birth to another son a few years later, but her second son luckily remained free of the virus, by virtue of nature. Eight years later she suddenly became very sick. A month before her death, she was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Her husband, the gentleman who I visited today, then got himself tested and found out he was positive. At first, he was worried that his death was imminent. He shared his HIV status with his best friend, who was suffering from a terminal illness. His friend instructed him to immediately share his diagnosis with his family. B. Singh gathered as much information as he could, getting studies and texts translated from American scientific journals to Punjabi, to be fully equipped to deal with the virus. He has been seeing Dr. Bharti for a few years and has been successful on his antiretroviral treatment. His son is also healthy, though I noticed a stark difference in the level of shyness between him and his younger, HIV negative brother. I asked the older brother if he plays any sports at school and his father replied that he plays cricket and football. The son himself was too shy to talk to me directly, though he did sneak a few smiles my way.
When I first arrived at B. Singh’s house, they offered me a glass of coke. It was hot so I happily accepted. Because it was my first visit to a patient’s home, I was nervous about what questions I should and should not ask him and his family and I became lost in thought for a few minutes, holding my glass of coke until B. Singh had gathered his entire family. After a few minutes, I noticed that B. Singh’s brother kept looking at my glass and wasn’t sipping his cup of coke also. The thought struck me that perhaps his brother was thinking that I wasn’t drinking the soda because B. Singh also would have one time used the glass. I immediately took a sip of the soda, and his brother followed in action. One of the first comments B. Singh made once his whole family was gathered was to point out to his family, especially the sister-in-law who knows his diagnosis, that they will be ok if they use the same utensils, plates, and cups as he uses. When I asked B. Singh if he had any problems disclosing his HIV status to his family, he said no, his family was completely understanding. But after noticing the slight tension in his family, I felt that though some members of his family are open and accept what B. Singh tells them he learns from his doctors, there is still apprehension on the part of some members of his internal family. The stigma that HIV patients such as B. Singh have to deal with does not go away with simply explaining the facts. It takes conviction and faith in the message to fully deal with the superstitions and fears which predominate society.
I asked B. Singh if he knows any others in the village who are HIV positive. He said yes, but he does not disclose to them his status. Rather, in some indirect method tells them that he has a friend of a friend of a friend who goes to Amritsar to see Dr. Bharti and is taking medicine and is doing just fine. It is through this by-word-of-mouth relay system that many patients come into contact with the HIV physicians in Amritsar. I attribute this to a lack of faith in the medical establishment, because there is a wide continuum in quality and standards of care and because patient trust is largely developed from personal experience. But most significantly, as B. Singh told me, patients do not go to get treatment because they do not know that medical treatment exists. The amount of awareness about HIV, especially in villages, is weak and largely limited to feeding a culture of fear about the disease. Quite surprisingly, even though every village has qualified health workers working within its parameters, even many of them do not know that there is life-sustaining medicine available for HIV positive people.
Another significant hurdle to care exists in medical quacks. While alternative systems of medicine (alternatives to allopathic medicine) are regularly practice in India, such as homeopathic medicine and ayurvedic medicine, these medical systems have not developed adequate treatments for HIV/AIDS. Moreover, in many villages illicit quackery thrives on people’s faith and superstitions in the form of soothsayers and potion-makers. In the case of HIV, patients who fall into the trap of taking treatment from these medical quacks end up wasting their financial resources and end up delaying or not receiving necessary allopathic medical treatment. I asked B. Singh if he had taken any "desi dwaiyaa" from a quack and he said yes, before he had gone to the doctors in Amritsar, he had seen an ad in the newspaper from a person in Kerala in southern India who claimed to have a cure to HIV. He paid the 11,000 Rupees (a massive investment!) and had the medicine couriered to his home. After a few weeks he realized the medicines were not improving his condition and he decided to pursue the physicians in Amritsar. I have heard of other patients in the clinic who have also fallen prey to this Kerala medical scam and unfortunately patients throughout India are falling prey to this get-rich-quick scam.
Before I left, I asked B. Singh what he thinks about his future. He said he has thought about getting re-married but he knows he has to marry a woman who is HIV positive also. Then I asked him what he thinks about his older son’s future. He became pensive for a moment, and then replied, "We are just handling this day-by-day, making sure he grows strong. But yes, I have thought about his marriage. In five or six years, we will find a HIV positive girl for him. It will be hard, but I will do it." As I was leaving B. Singh’s home, I waved goodbye to his son and thought about his life story. His birth was defined by HIV, his childhood has been defined by HIV, and his marriage, a rite of passage dear to the heart of many South Asians, will also be defined by HIV. HIV has the potential to alter a patient’s life course more than most diseases. In a village off the beaten path to Tarn Taarn, HIV is taking a large role in shaping the lives within a small village home.
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AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar

AAG, AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group, Amritsar
Read this which is a quote from an intern working with us these days.She is PK from USA.
Amritsar's Positive People Network
June 11,2006-This afternoon I had the privilege of sitting in on the very first meeting of the Amritsar Positive People’s Network. Dr. Bharti and his colleagues are organizing their patients so that the positive patients can have some leverage and negotiate lower drug prices and other medical necessities for themselves. This organization will also create a centralized location and resource for HIV issues in Amritsar and will allow for greater networking with other national and international HIV/AIDS NGO’s.
The meeting was small but reflected a hodgepodge of society. The future president of the newly formed organization is a nurse in a local hospital. The secretary is a teacher. The treasurer is a farmer. Some of them have disclosed to their family, neighbors, and workplace their HIV status and some have not. One of the members today, after four years of seeing Dr. Bharti for his healthcare, disclosed his real name to his doctor, but only because as signatories to the Positive People’s Network he needed to submit official paperwork which would have disclosed his real name. While watching him disclose his real identity to his physician, I felt like the patient felt a sense of liberation, that he finally could be known by his own name. But I understand why he had hid his identity for so long. The stigma is so intense, that one can’t know who to trust.This leads me to the story of one of the patients who came in this morning for a checkup. I’ll identify him as R. Singh. (Singh is another ubiquitous last name in this part of the world.) His wife had tested positive for HIV a few months ago and started taking anti-retrovirals under Dr. B’s care. She succumbed to an opportunistic infection of cryptococcal meningitis in March. Before she had passed, her husband and family had mentally tortured her about her disease and she had to resort back to her own mother and father in her last days. She passed away on March 6, 2006.
From hearing the stories of the few women who I’ve met so far, it appears that they often are blamed for bringing the disease into the family unit, even though more than likely it comes from the man’s own extra-marital exploits, as men have a lot more freedom of movement in South Asian society.
After R. Singh had gathered his medicines and had his blood taken for a T-Cell Count, his father came into the room alone to ask the doctor if his son could get married. Dr. B explained to him that if he were to get re-married, he could only get married to a woman who is also HIV positive. Dr. B framed the issue as a question of the problems that would develop if his new wife were to become infected, rather than an issue of keeping the infection from spreading. I thought it was a proper response, as one of the issues that Positive People face is that society loses confidence on Positive People’s right to lead a normal life. So perhaps, one day, if R. Singh finds the right person, he should get re-married and have a spouse to help him raise his 4 year old son. But Dr. B did let R. Singh’s father know that if he is to get married, it could only be with someone who is HIV positive, or to whom he has disclosed his positive status and would be willing to be in a marriage of abstinence. He also said that though it may take some compromise on things that traditionally many Punjabi’s look at when making marital alliances, such as caste or class, people who are HIV positive do get married and do live normal lives.
It was encouraging to see the hope that many of the Positive People who came to the clinic today felt about themselves and their health. It has been eye opening to meet these patients and to see their assurance in themselves and their future. HIV does not mean death. HIV also means life.
# posted by pk : 6:39 AM 3 comments
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Day 1 In The Clinic
This morning I sat in with Dr. Bharti, the local physician known for treating HIV/AIDS throughout the area. In 1993 he identified the first HIV case in the Amritsar district and he has been steadily seeing a large number of patients since then. Although I have exchanged emails and talked with Dr. Bharti via phone, today was the first time I met him and I was struck most by how gently and with understated empathy he dealt with his patients. Because HIV/AIDS is more than just a physical disease but also reflects the pathologies of society, empathy and understanding are central aspects in developing the trust of these patients who face daily betrayals by society because of the stigma of their HIV status. I hope in the next few weeks I can pick up some lessons from Dr. Bharti on how to become a physician with whom patients can feel comfortable and open.The first woman who came in this morning looked just like my grandmother. She was rugged, looked like any other elderly Punjabi Sikh woman, wore a chunni (scarf) on her head and was draped in a kirpan. Dr. Bharti referred to her as MataJi, because of her age. She had journeyed from her village to pick up treatment for her husband, who is HIV positive. He had been a sevadaar for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandak Committee and they have been married for more than 40 years. He was first diagnosed in 2001 after developing TB and hepatitis concurrently but was infuriated at learning the diagnosis and did not believe that the doctors were right because “he had done nothing wrong”, as she put it. Only a few months ago, after developing a case of herpes zoster and having his T cell count down to a reported 70, did her husband accept that he might be HIV positive. He is a drug addict and most likely picked up the disease through dirty needles. Drug addiction is rampant in Punjab. This past week Guru Nanak Dev University issued a report that roughly 75% of the youth in Punjab between the ages of 16-35 are addicted to drugs, primarily in the rural areas. [LINK] I assume the rates are less overwhelming amongst the elderly, but this gentleman’s case reveals that drug addiction exists in all strata of Punjab’s society. His wife had made the long trek from her village to pick up 10 days of medicine for her husband. She was most concerned about whether these medicines would help him. She explained how he was deathly thin, had ongoing diarrhea, and that his care was all-consuming. She appeared very distressed as she explained her husband’s situation and the enormous toll his disease was taking on her finances. The anti-retroviral drugs that she came to pick up cost roughly 500 Rupees. If he does not take these drugs, he has certain death. If he takes these drugs continually, he can potentially live a normal life. To compound the situation, this gentleman must also take other medicines to control the opportunistic diseases he’s picked up. For most rural people in Punjab, these medications create an enormous financial toll. I sensed from the gentleman’s wife that she felt if there was no hope for him, she did not want to expend all of their financial resources. Her concern is normal for anyone having to juggle the burdens of hopelessness and limited resources.Before she left, she explained that she had also developed a case of herpes zoster recently. Dr. B immediately took this as an opportunity to encourage her also to get tested. He asked her when they had their last sexual contact and she answered six months ago. This was a delicate situation I have been curious about for awhile. How does one ask a woman, especially a traditional and uneducated woman, about sex in a culture where sex is a complete taboo topic? Dr. B. explained to me that in India even physicians of the opposite sex shun from being direct with their patients when it comes to topics of sex, so it was very amazing to see how openly he asked her “qusI Awps ivC kdo imly sI?” and to watch her very openly answer. I hope that she does follow up on getting herself tested and that she hasn’t been infected.The next patient who came in was a beautiful 25 year young woman S. Kaur. (Kaur is as common a last name here in Punjab as Smith, so I feel comfortable using her last name without breaching her confidentiality.) I couldn’t believe this young woman was infected because she appeared to be healthy and thriving. Her father had accompanied her from their village and he explained how just a few months ago she had been just bones and they had to carry her like a baby from place to place. He was so grateful to the doctor for his help in getting his daughter well. S. Kaur’s story is another typical story. Her husband is a truck-driver and most likely picked up the infection through extra-marital sexual contact during his trucking route. He is in complete denial that he has HIV and when S. Kaur started to become sick and her tests came out to be positive, he left her, even though they have a five year old child together. He offers no financial help to S. Kaur and her father and mother completely support her, even though they themselves have very little to offer. Her father explained how he asks his brothers and sisters for money to cover the costs of the S.’s anti-retrovirals. Dr. Bharti tried to investigate S.’s skills and encouraged her to find some sort of way to support herself, because HIV/AIDS is a lifetime disease and she will need to find a way so that she can continue to afford her medication. Dr. B. asked her if she would be interested in joining a newly formed Positive People’s NGO in Amritsar, but cautioned her that people might ask her if she also has HIV if she were to work for this NGO. She said she did not have the courage to say that she has HIV, despite the financial incentive. Dr. B also explored the possibility of her selling him a sheet that she embroidered and then he selling it for profit as a charity item made by an HIV positive person to support her medication fees. S. embroiders sheets for export and receives about 120 Rupees a sheet for 10 days of labor, so to support her 1000 Rupee a month medication cost, she needs much more than what she’s currently able to procure. S. appeared hopeful as she left and I had a feeling that she will take initiative to follow one of Dr. B’s suggestions on how to handle the finances of her infection.I saw three other HIV patients this morning with Dr. Bharti, but I’ll leave you with the MataJi’s and S. Kaur’s stories, because to me, they are an excellent intro into the affects of HIV/AIDS on the lives of the families of Punjab.
# posted by pk : 6:35 AM 1 comments

AAG,AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group,Amritsar

AAG,AmritsarAIDS Awareness Group,Amritsar
We are an organisation in force since 1993.Right now I,Dr.RakeshBharti,a dermatologist and STD specialist,am taking care of 400 HIV families scattered in various parts of Amritsar.Amritsar is a city of religeous and historical importance with majority population of sikhs a,minority community of India.Being situated on the border of two countries-India and Pakistan,Amritsar also faces the challenges of IVDU because of drug trafficking.The HIV positive people here are from various walks of life,but majority are truckers.Nonetheless ,the agriculturists,business folk,govt officewrs including those in the discplined forces like police,technocrats like doctors are no exception.Male to female ratio of victims is 3:2.Routes of transmission mainly are Sex,IVDU, thru needles of quacks and mother to child in that order.The access to ARV remains an area of concern and very few can really afford the same,although the cost is roughly 25 dollars per month only.
One can have some idea about these people by seeing the blog of PK the address is http://punjab-healthandhumanrights.blogspot.com/
I would love to reply any medical querries in developing countries specially regarding HIV,Sexual disorders and STD's
Dr.Rakesh Bharti,M.D
BDC Research Center,
27-D,Sant Avenue,The Mall,
Amritsar,Punjab-143001,INDIA
rakeshbharti1[at]rediffmail[dot]com
Telephone-919814044213 ; 911832277822 ;911832278522

Help for Orphans and Widows of HIV Patients in Amritsar

This is to seek help for orphans and widows of HIV patients in Amritsar.One months cost is 1100 Rs.(25 dollars roughly)