KNOWING YOUR STATUS: THE POWER TO ACT
VIJAY KUMAR (VOICED BY JAYA SHREEDHAR)
TAMIL NADU, COIMBATORE, INDIA

(SOUND OF HOSPITAL WAITING ROOM)

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE:  
The reception area at the Perundurai IRT Government Hospital.
Someone asks directions to the Voluntarily Counseling and Testing Center or VCTC.
An employee at the hospital shows him the way.
VCTC is a place where you can get tested for HIV.
A sign reads: ‘Counseling is in Progress’. 
Many people are waiting nearby.
Each has his or her own concern.
Some have come for their test results.
Others already know that they’re HIV Positive.
They are here to get more information on HIV from the counselor.
Dr Krishnaswmy Mahadevan works with the Department of Sexually Transmitted Diseases at the Coimbatore Government Hospital.
He has over twenty years experience in the field.
He’s met many different kinds of people.

DR MAHADEVAN (VOICE OVER):
Nowadays we have people coming here asking to be tested for HIV.  That is a welcome change. Some want to take the test before marriage. Others because they’re taking up a new job or want to go abroad. They all feel they’re at risk of HIV.  

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
Those who visit a VCTC always receive counseling.
A blood test is only done with their permission.
VCTCs use a special HIV test.
You can get your results on the same day.

DR MAHADEVAN (VOICE OVER):
Our test is called a rapid test. Today there are many kinds of HIV tests. The ELISA test is the most commonly known. The test takes quite long and people usually have to come back the next day for their results.  A rapid test is basically a simplified ELISA. In just 30 minutes it tells you whether the person HIV positive or negative. At VCT centers clients get their blood samples tested in the morning and can get their results on the same afternoon. If 30 people come for testing in the morning, we give the test reports to all the thirty in the evening.

(SOUNDS OF COUNSELING CENTER, COUNSELOR’S GREETING)

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
Valarmathi is a counselor at the Perundurai IRT hospital’s VCTC.
Her first client for the day has just arrived.
           
(NATURAL SOUND OF COUNSELING)

The woman has come for an HIV test.

COUNSELOR VALAMARTHI (VOICE OVER):
We always keep all the information during the counseling session confidential. We of course get to learn how a person came to be infected. We don’t share that with anybody.

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
Counseling is not just important for those who are infected with HIV.
Their partners need information as well.
Sometimes couples are discordant.
One person is negative and the other positive.
Partners then get special counseling.

COUNSELOR VALARMATHI (VOICE OVER):
We do the counseling individually. First we talk to the person with HIV alone. We ask the partner to wait outside. After that we speak to the person’s spouse. So we gather information from each of them separately. Then we make them sit down together and counsel them accordingly.

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
Bavani is 30 years old.
She’s living with HIV.  
She looks healthy.
But Bavani is different.  
She was infected with HIV a year ago.
When she found out she was positive, her world fell apart.

BHAVANI (VOICE OVER):
I was leading a happy and comfortable life in a cosy home. The minute I heard about my status I thought I was going to die. I didn’t know what HIV was. I only knew about AIDS. All I knew was that AIDS was disease that could kill you. I didn’t know how to react. I was stunned. My world turned dark and I felt very alone and afraid.

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
But today Bhavani is a different person.
Counseling has changed her life.
It’s made her hope again.
And helped her to reach out to others like her.
Bavani has become a peer educator for people living with HIV.

BHAVANI (VOICE OVER):
I got a lot of counseling. First at an integrated counseling and testing centre…then at an HIV positive network.  And later I also got help from the Government General Hospital in Salem. I got friends, support and drugs. I didn’t even listen to my husband…It’s only because of counseling that I took the medicine.

JAYA SHREEDHAR’S VOICE: 
Today there are many Bhavanis who’ve taken control of their lives again.
Testing positive does not have to mean the end.
HIV can infect anybody.
The virus does not discriminate.
Voluntarily Counseling and Testing Centers provide all the services needed.