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Item [Breastfeeding and HIV. Risks and advantages](Action contre le SIDA, 1995) Kaijage, Theresa J.Abstract PIP: HIV can be transmitted from the mother to the baby during pregnancy, birth, or breast feeding. Around 66% of infants born to HIV-infected mothers are not infected with HIV. Most infants breast fed by their HIV-infected mothers do not become infected with HIV via breast milk, even though HIV has been detected in breast milk. Breast feeding when the mother is HIV infected does increase the risks of HIV infection for the infant but the degree of risk is not yet known. It is not easy to know if an infant is HIV positive until 12-18 months. Certain factors do increase the risk of HIV transmission during breast feeding: recent maternal HIV infection and presence of AIDS-related infections. Medical experts are so preoccupied by the risks that women receive bad advice and decide not to breast feed out of fear of transmitting HIV to their newborn. Breast feeding is an important way for mothers to assure good health for their newborns. Infants not breast fed are 14 times more likely to suffer childhood diseases than exclusively breast fed infants. Health workers must continue to support breast feeding, especially in areas where infectious diseases and malnutrition are the main causes of death, where poor hygienic conditions prevail, and where limited financial resources do not allow viable infant feeding alternatives. In such scenarios, the risk of transmitting HIV via breast milk is less than the risk of death if an infant is not breast fed. Health workers need to counsel pregnant women on breast feeding and to encourage them to consider their risk status, regardless of HIV status, so the women can make a more informed decision whether or not to breast feed. They often must provide this counseling under conditions where neither HIV testing nor infant feeding alternatives are available. Infant feeding decisions affect the whole family. Health workers should address counseling services for other family members also. Regardless of the mothers' decision on breast feeding, they need support and counseling on caring for their infant and themselves under the best conditions.Item Exploring challenges faced by orphans in primary schools in ludewa district: a case of ludewa ward(Global scientific journal, 2022-03-03) Chanila, Daudi.; Minga, Rita.; Kaijage, Theresa J.; Mashalla, Yohana J.Background: The growing number of deaths of parents has created groups of children deprived of parents and parental care because of breakdown of the social safety net, community-based care, and support arrangements. Consequently, orphaned children are faced with many challenges which affect school performance. Methods: Descriptive qualitative study design was conducted using in-depth interviews and focus group discussion. Participants selected included Street Leaders and heads of households in Ludewa Ward, Ludewa District, Njombe Region. Data were transcribed verbatim, coded, and analysed using Grounded Theory approach. Results: Five themes emerged including self-directed reading time at home, school attendance, school requirement, grief, and social support systems. Heavy domestic chores after school affected school attendance and performance and grief coupled with poor social support systems enhanced psychosocial challenges contributing to poor school attendance and performance. Conclusion: Concerted effort is required to involve parents, guardians, religious organisations, and other spheres of influence to advance collaboration across government in order to achieve a world without orphans and vulnerable children. Keywords: HIV, orphans, grief, school attendance, school performance, support systemsItem Global Learning Among Undergraduate Social Work Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.(Urban Social Work, 2019) Kaijage, Theresa J.Abstract While global learning among undergraduate students of color has slightly increased over the past decade, there are major research gaps regarding students of color attending historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), more specifically, the number of undergraduate students of color majoring in social work. The primary goal of this article is to discuss barriers that may prevent students of color who attend HBCUs from participating in global learning experiences. Also, provided in this article is a discussion regarding a Global Learning Visits Program within an undergrduate social work program at Bowie State University, an HBCU, which can serve as a model to assist students with addressing and overcoming barriers in order to take advantage of study abroad learning opportunities.Item HIV and breastfeeding: the health of mother and infant(Reproductive health matters, 1995) Kaijage, Theresa J.Basing decisions on adequate and unbiased information rather than ignorance is what informed choice is all about. Women with HIV have a right to information when they are making decisions and choices about whether to get pregnant carry a pregnancy to term and go through childbirth, and whether to breast-feed. These decisions must be based on awareness of all the risks that the woman is taking in relation to her own health, as well as her infant’s future. The situation in communities besieged by the AIDS epidemic is such that the decision to breastfeed, bottlefeed or spoonfeed is usually a life-and-death decision. For this reason, all the information available on the possibility of pregnancy-related HIV transmission, including through breastfeeding, no matter how inconclusive, must be accessible to all women who may wish to weigh this risk against the social, cultural and economic realities of their own lives and those of their families and communities.Item The Influences of Stress and Social Support on Adherence to Health Promotion Strategies by People Living with HIV/AIDS in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.(Journal of HIV/AIDS & Social Services, 2010) Kaijage, Theresa J.Abstract In Tanzania, about 7% of the adult population is HIV-infected. Given limited pharmaceutical options, adherence to strategies that foster health and well-being is vital to reducing both new and repeated HIV exposure. We investigated the influences of HIV/AIDS-related stress and social support on adherence to health promotion strategies by people living with HIV/AIDS in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. In-person interviews were conducted with 212 individuals who were clients of local AIDS service organizations. Regression analyses indicated that HIV-associated stress had a direct, negative effect on adherence, decreasing the practice of health-maintaining behaviors and increasing engagement in sexual risk behaviors. Informal social support moderated the relationship between stress and sexual risk but did not buffer the impact of stress on health-enhancing behaviors. No moderation effect was found for formal social support. The implications of our findings for social work and public health practice are discussed.Item Media analysis of albino killings in Tanzania: a social work and human rights perspective(Ethics and Social Welfare, 2014) Kaijage, Theresa J.Murders of people with albinism are a recently emerging human rights issue in Africa, particularly Tanzania. Thus far, public debates about albino killings in Tanzania and other African countries have been dominated by media reports rather than academic writing. This paper presents the findings of a content analysis of Swahili and English Tanzanian media reports published between 2008 and 2011 on albinism and albino murders in Tanzania, and the diverse activities that have unfolded in response to these attacks. Using a human rights framework, the article explores these responses from a social work perspective. It finds that interventions are often framed with reference to African conceptions of humanness. These conceptions are found to be compatible with notions of human rights as relational, in which the various rights and responsibilities of different members of society are seen as interconnected. In practice however, some interventions have resulted in trade-offs between competing rights, causing further harm to victims and their families. To become sustainable therefore, interventions should aim to support all the human rights necessary for the well-being of Africans with albinism, their families and communities. Further research to this effect is recommended.Item Para-social work to address most vulnerable children in sub-Sahara Africa: A case example in Tanzania.(Children and Youth Services Review, 2010) Kaijage, Theresa J.Addressing the needs of the most vulnerable children is a universal challenge, particularly in developing countries lacking infrastructure of social welfare services, adequately trained workforce and educational programs. This article describes training and utilization of para-social workers to the social service needs of children and families. These supervised para-professional community based staff and volunteers can fill gaps in serving the needs of children and families, particularly where social welfare systems are undeveloped or severely stretched. We present the development of one such program as a case study, the Social Work Partnership for Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Tanzania. A competency-based training model includes an introductory workshop, a six month-long supervised field component and subsequent training and technical assistance. The curriculum teaches practical skills to assist vulnerable children, especially those HIV affected, including assessing needs, implementing case management resource linkages, counseling, family support, and ongoing service coordination. Over 500 participants have begun the para-social work program in districts throughout the country. Participants report high satisfaction with the training, and knowledge scores consistently and significantly improve throughout the training. This partnership aims to create a sustainable para-professional workforce to address gaps of most vulnerable children in Tanzania and can serve as a model to apply social work principles and techniques in settings where professional and structural resources are highly limited.