ONE blogger Amy Graff is on a trip to Ghana with ONE. This piece was originally printed on The BabyCenter Blog.
When Florence was diagnosed with HIV in 2005, she was terrified and overcome with sadness.
But her husband was hopeful. “We can do this,” he said. “I support you. We’re going to the hospital.”
Florence started taking antiretroviral drugs (ARVs), which protected her from infection, and went on to have two children. Because of her regimented medication regime (two pills a day), both were HIV negative.
I was able to interview Florence on a visit to Korle Bu Hospital in Accra, Ghana.
The hospital’s HIV unit receives funding to from the Global Fund, which pays for the ARVs. Currently, over 16,000 patients are receiving treatment.
As recently as five years ago, ARVs weren’t widely available and there would be little hope for someone like Florence.
Here’s a podcast of our conversation.
As you listen you can scroll through the slideshow of her family photos that we talk about in the interview.
The photos are a little fuzzy but you can still see the beauty in this woman and her family.
Like this podcast? Listen to the one below from Dad Blogger C.C. Chapman, who is also on ONE’s Ghana trip. He has a loveable classic radio voice and in this cast he shares his first impressions of Ghana. For more podcasts like these, go to his personal blog.
Follow Amy Graff on Twitter at @BayAreaMoms.
