Living with HIV in the Philippines: Family Support Group Talk

The Project Red Ribbon recently conducted its Family Support Group Talk (SGT) at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine wards. The goal of this support group was to gather family members and partners of patients with HIV in the ward and conduct a talk about acceptance.

In the private room 1 of RITM ward, all 11 participants came: parents, sibling, relative and partner and listened to our messages, testimonials. Five persons with HIV talked about their HIV journeys and their lives. Some participants voiced out their concerns and their thoughts. Some cried while the talk was going on. At the end of the session, we conducted a music therapy where the participants wrote love letters to their sons, daughters, sibling, nephew and partner confined in the ward.

The Family SGT is scheduled every Monday afternoon at RITM, a joint project of Project Red Ribbon and the AIDS Research Group headed by Dr. Rossana Ditangco.