Australian High Commissioner Visit PNGIMR Headquaters | PNGIMR getting ready for 40th Anniversary | PNGIMR recieves K35M for research | Professor Siba meets with IRB of UHC MC in USA | Professor Siba meets visits PNGIMR Madang | First EHP HIV/AIDS Stakeholders meeting | 18 graduate as HIV counselors | Pneumocarr workshop in Finland | This quater in Pictures | Grace attends workshop in Melbourne | Mr Tavul attends workshop in Cambodia | PNGIMR celebrates openday with DWU | PNGIMR joins DWU to celebrate open day in picture |Staff graduate from UPNG |Visitors |Staff going Finish |New Staff |Community Service

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18 Graduate as HIV Councelors

Eighteen people graduated as HIV councilors after attending a two weeks ‘HIV and VCT Councilors training workshop’ at the PNGIMR head quarters in Goroka.

The 18 graduate councellors with Dr Suparat Phuanukoonnon and trainer Mrs Mary Aisa in front.

The intensive training workshop, which was sanctioned by the National AIDS Council and organized by Fellow Researcher of the PNGIMR Dr Suparat Phuanukoonnon, commenced on the 7th of May and ended on the 18th of May 2007.

Out of the eighteen who graduated as councilors, thirteen were PNGIMR staff; four came from the Goroka base hospital and one from GBH TB clinic; as an invitation was extended to the hospital to take part in the workshop.

According to Dr Phuanukoonnon the workshop was done in preparation for the big HIV/AIDS work that the institute was preparing to do in the near future.

“PNGIMR’s research into HIV is expanding. So we need to provide necessary training for our staff before hand to accommodate the work that we’ll be taking on soon,” she said.

She said she was very delighted that the course had happened and was finally over, because for a long time she had thought of having a HIV & VCT Councilors training workshop for the staff.

She said there was a variation of professional backgrounds among the eighteen who graduated. There’s a Health Extension Officer, three pediatric nurses, three nursing officers, three graduate scientists, research assistances, and a disease control officer.

Dr Phuanukoonnon congratulated the participants for giving their time and effort to attend the workshop, thus making it a success.

She assured the graduates that they were now certified HIV councilors who could practice anywhere in PNG.

Director of PNGIMR Professor Peter Siba also challenged the graduating councilors that the role they were going to play as councilors was a sensitive one, so whenever they were involved in it, they had to practice the rule of a councilor, not somebody who knows about AIDS and goes on and on about it.

“When you are performing your role as a councilor, you have the privilege of being the councilor and you access information from patients and how you do it is very important,” he stressed.

Professor Siba also pointed out that the important aspect to HIV/AIDS now, is the stigma that’s been taken on by sufferers and their families.

“You are all professionals in the particular jobs you do as clinical staff, scientist and so forth. So you must uphold your other profession as a councilor,” he said.

Professor Siba pointed out that, because PNGIMR had extended its invitation to the hospital and five staff from the hospital had done the workshop along side their colleges from PNGIMR, it showed that PNGIMR was there to work in partnership with the hospital and the provincial health, so as partners they could address the issue of HIV/AIDS in the Eastern Highlands province and in Papua New Guinea.