RICHNESS the WRITER

By Lillian Mworeko - ICWEA Uganda Differentiated service delivery (DSD) models should be designed and delivered around the choices, options and priorities of service recipients.  Putting the service recipient at the centered means making sure that they meaningfully participate in decision making about what, when, where and how they access services. Furthermore, it means acknowledging that the needs and priorities of people living with HIV change over time and may require transition to a different model. The changes that may require a service delivery transition can be related to ageing, pregnancy, clinical stability and other personal circumstances. DSD models that are truly centered around the needs of people living with HIV must not only focus on processes, procedures and protocols, but also pay attention to facilitating effective transitions or moves between models. Too often, services do not appropriately respond to the heterogeneity of people living with HIV and the dynamic na...

By Richard Agodzo    Many still see HIV as a deadly virus but for Madam Gifty Torkornu her journey of living with HIV has been a blessing. Twenty years of positive living, she celebrated her milestone with the St Paul's Catholic Church in Kpehe-Accra Newtown together with her friends from the Ghana Network of Persons living with HIV/AIDS (NAP+ Ghana). In her early stages of HIV, Gifty described the ordeal of her survival as a grace and love from God. According to her, she lost hope of making it through her early diagnosis as she lost her baby in the course.  She said, "I was in my prime of becoming a civil servant when I got to know my status." She added, "You may think HIV is far away from you but it is closer to you than you think and it is no 'respector' of  person." She encouraged the congregation to test and know their HIV status and also encourage their partners to know their status.  "Knowing your HIV status puts you ahead of others in many t...

Daniel Shaw failed to tell his victim he had the virus. Credit: West Yorkshire Police A man who infected a woman with HIV during unprotected sex has been jailed for causing grievous bodily harm. Daniel Shaw, 43, from Leeds, failed to tell his victim he had the virus before they slept together. He had not been taking his medication at the time. The woman found she may be at risk after an online search revealed a news article from October 2020, when Shaw was jailed for unrelated offences relating to previous partners. The article made reference to his HIV. The victim became ill shortly afterwards and was diagnosed with the condition. When she confronted Shaw, he denied it and claimed she had been aware. Shaw was arrested after the woman contacted the police in August 2021 but repeatedly denied the offence. He told officers the victim had been aware of his condition and had chosen to take the risk. haw, of Town Street, Armley, admitted causing grievous bodily harm and was sentenced to thr...

Dozens sentenced for their roles in Atlanta-based fraud and money laundering operation that stole over $30 million from individuals and companies. More than three dozen individuals in Atlanta in the United States (US) have been sentenced for their involvement in a large-scale fraud and money laundering operation that targeted individuals, corporations, and financial institutions throughout the United States. The defendants, some of them with Ghanaian names used business email compromise schemes, romance fraud scams, and retirement account scams, among other frauds, to steal more than $30 million from numerous victims.  The U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Georgia published the list of those sentenced and their various offences on Friday, June 2, 2023. “The Department of Justice has tirelessly worked for more than four years to obtain justice for dozens of victims impacted by this brazen criminal organization,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “The defendants’ ...