Online Reporter
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu [email protected]
WHEN Ms Bridget Moyo* tested positive for HIV in November last year, her world came crashing down.
After 36 years of marriage, the Beitbridge village health worker discovered that the virus had entered her home through her husband’s extra-marital affair. Although both were immediately placed on antiretroviral therapy (ART), she could not bring herself to accept the diagnosis.
Instead, Moyo stopped taking her medication.
“My husband immediately started taking his treatment, but I refused. I was in denial and I told him that ART was for promiscuous people only,” she said.
“I could not accept that after living responsibly for so many years, I was now HIV positive.”
Months later, her viral load remained dangerously high while her husband’s stabilised.
Clinic staff soon discovered that she was defaulting on treatment and referred her to a National Aids Council (Nac)-led Community ART Refill Group (CARG), a peer support initiative that is changing lives for many people living with HIV in Beitbridge District.
Today, Moyo says the programme helped her confront her fears and rebuild her life.
“Having a support system is very important. Even though I worked as a village health worker for years, I was not prepared for the shock of testing positive,” she said.
“It still hurts that my husband’s recklessness affected my health, but I have realised that HIV is not the end of the world.”
Across Beitbridge, stories like Moyo’s are becoming increasingly common as CARGs emerge as a lifeline for patients struggling with stigma, denial and treatment adherence.
The groups are self-formed by HIV-positive people living within the same community who are clinically stable on ART. Members meet regularly to monitor treatment adherence, discuss health challenges and encourage one another.
Each group also keeps refill monitoring records to identify members who may be defaulting and require follow-up.
For Chrispen Ncube, joining a CARG may have saved his life.
The Beitbridge resident admits that alcohol abuse and inconsistent treatment nearly cost him everything.
“I used to forget to take my medication and I drank a lot of alcohol. I do piece jobs and sometimes I would travel without carrying my tablets,” he said.
“My health deteriorated and I was hospitalised several times. At one point I thought I was going to die.”
After being enrolled into a CARG, he found encouragement from other members who shared similar struggles.
“Meeting other patients motivated me to change. Now I take my medication religiously and I never travel without it,” said Ncube.
Beyond medication adherence, some CARGs have evolved into social and economic support systems, with members running poultry, horticulture and Internal Savings and Lending Schemes (ISALS) projects to cushion vulnerable households.
In Mtetengwe Ward 7, CARG leader, Appearance Mudau spends much of her time tracking down defaulters, counselling distressed patients and mentoring newly diagnosed members.
For one month, she made daily visits to the home of a man who had stopped taking his medication consistently.
“This patient had skipped doses so often that after six months he still had tablets remaining. The clinic alerted me and I started visiting him every day and engaging his relatives until he eventually began adhering to treatment,” said Mudau.
Mudau said many patients default because they struggle emotionally after diagnosis, while others face financial stress, domestic conflict or side effects from medication.
“In one case, a woman’s viral load remained high because she was under severe stress caused by financial problems and conflict at home,” she said.
“As women in the CARG forums, we sit down and talk openly about our challenges. That emotional support is important because the mental state of an HIV patient matters.”
Mudau said long-term ART users within the groups also play a critical mentoring role for newly diagnosed patients who may still be battling fear and stigma.
Beitbridge District Aids coordinator, Edward Mulaudzi said CARG leaders act as a bridge between health institutions and communities.
“They distribute ART medication, conduct follow-ups on members due for viral load testing and disseminate HIV-related information within communities. They also identify people who may need HIV testing services or treatment and refer them to clinics,” he said.
Mulaudzi said the programme has significantly strengthened treatment adherence while reducing default rates in many communities.
*Name changed to protect identity
