Staff Reporter
SCHOLASTICA Goagoses stands out as one of the most impactful advocates for HIV treatment as she transitioned from initially avoiding HIV medication to now consistently taking her medicine and working to ensure that HIV-positive individuals receive and adhere to treatment to eventually achieve HIV viral suppression.
Goagoses, who tested HIV-positive in 2007, currently works for the Key Populations Strengthening Technical Assistance Response (KP-STAR) project, a United States (U.S.) funded initiative that aims to provide health and other crucial services in Namibia to people who are at risk of contracting HIV.
However, before Goagoses worked for KP-STAR, she took drugs, abused alcohol, and failed to take her medication regularly, resulting in her immune system weakening.
“My HIV positive diagnosis was the most difficult news at the time due to limited information, stigma, and discrimination associated with the disease. I feared dying and started abusing alcohol and drugs. My body was weak, and I was also diagnosed with tuberculosis. In 2010, I weighed merely 27 kilograms,” Goagoses recalled.
In an effort to avoid stigma, Goagoses developed a habit of changing health facilities whenever she defaulted on taking her medication, pretending to be a first-time client. However, an opportunity arose for her to become a Peer Educator, contingent on improving her lifestyle and relationship with medicine.
This meant that, as a Peer Educator, she would be responsible for reaching out to other community members who live with or are affected by HIV to convince them to receive professional care and treatment. Goagoses admitted that it took her several weeks to decide whether she wanted to change her life and start afresh.
“In the end I decided to change. I had to change not only to help my peers to take up HIV services, but also to help myself and gaining control of my own life,” Goagoses said.
Her determination paid off, and she eventually became a Case Manager in Gobabis under the KP-STAR project. Now, her role is to ensure that clients who test HIV positive are consistently receiving and taking antiretroviral treatment (ART) and eventually become virally suppressed, meaning their blood tests do not detect HIV anymore, and the person can no longer transmit HIV to someone else.
However, she does not only work with HIV-positive individuals. Goagoses also ensures that clients who test HIV-negative but are at high risk of acquiring HIV are getting Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) medication to reduce the risk of HIV infection. She also provides other health and social support services to those in need.
“Considering my own defaulting history, I first had to evaluate myself. I took a very important step in my journey when I requested to be transferred from Katutura Health Center in Windhoek to Epako Clinic in Gobabis. At that time, my viral load was very high. But with the support of the Epako Clinic staff and USAID’s KP-STAR project I became a model HIV patient. I am now virally suppressed and proud that I cannot transmit the virus to anyone,” Goagoses said.
Goagoses currently manages 139 clients on ART and 51 on PrEP. She received her Case Management training from IntraHealth Namibia, and she is also a certified HIV Rapid Tester. KP-STAR is funded by the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Intrahealth Namibia.
“Scholastica is a living testimony of how a single person can impact others to fully benefit from services provided by the Ministry of Health and Social Services in collaboration with projects such as KP-STAR. She is also a good example of how to remain healthy and live positively with HIV,” the U.S. Embassy in Namibia’s Deputy Chief of Mission, Brandon Hudspeth, said.
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