Professor Peter Figueroa, chief of epidemiology and HIV/AIDS at the Ministry of Health, speaks at the launch of the Rotary Club of New Kingston's HIV/AIDS public education campaign, at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel yesterday. - Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer

Petrina Francis, Staff Reporter

Two inner-city communities are currently benefiting from a HIV/AIDS education campaign, in a bid to reduce the rate of transmission in these areas.

The programme, which is organised by the Rotary Club of New Kingston, in collaboration with the University of the West Indies HIV/AIDS Response Programme (UWIHARP) and the Ministry of Health, provides counselling for persons in Grants Pen and Swallowfield, informing them of the need for consistent condom use.

Communities targeted

Alwyn Smith, president of the Rotary Club of New Kingston, said the two communities were targeted because of the club's familiarity with them, among other things.

Dubbed 'My Life, My Choice', the programme is the club's major project for the administrative year 2006-2007.

"We believe that as responsible people who love our country, we need tolook at this scourge (HIV/AIDS) and try to stop it in its track," Mr. Smith told reporters yesterday following the launch of the programme, held at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, New Kingston.

"People still don't realise how you catch AIDS and so the stigmatisation really critically affects us. We want people not to believe that it is all right to have AIDS, but to realise that having AIDS is not the end of the world, and that they can maintain a reasonable enough life," Mr. Smith added.

Baseline survey

The programme started last October and a baseline survey, which examined stigmatisation, frequency of sex and condom use has been conducted in both communities. Mr. Smith was unable to provide the details of the findings but noted that condom use among the residents was not as high as it ought to be

The president noted that after the programme comes to an end next month, 23 persons who are currently being trained as peer educators at the UWI, will continue to educate the residents. He also noted that billboards will be there to carry the message of the importance of having protected sex.

In his remarks, Professor Peter Figueroa, chief of epidemiology and AIDS in the Ministry of Health, urged parents to talk to their children about HIV/AIDS.

petrina francis@gleaner.com