Mariana’s Courage
By Cibele Maquile
Gaza Province, Mozambique
May 22, 2008

Mariana* is a 35-year-old business woman and single mother of four children — two from her first marriage and two from her second. Mariana, who lives in Gaza Province in Mozambique, lost her youngest son when he was four years old. As if this was not enough, her seven-year old son also became very sick and had to miss school at least four times per month. He had swollen glands, enlarged lymph nodes, and a bad cough.

Mariana was not in good health herself, and at times had a fever and general malaise. It seemed the family’s health problems were more worrisome every day. Despite several visits to the doctor with only slight improvements, Mariana was unable to work to support her children. She finally decided to get herself and her seven-year-old tested for HIV. She was tired of dealing with these health issues and she wanted to know her status, whatever it may be, because she wanted her health and that of her son to improve. She went to the health center and both she and her son tested HIV-positive.

I met Mariana in a hospital where the Foundation supports both HIV prevention and care and treatment activities, as she was preparing to commence treatment. She told me that she was happy to know her status and not live in doubt. Even though there is no cure for HIV, knowing she is HIV-positive will help Mariana to improve her health and the health of her son, and live longer. Becoming well enough to work and helping her son to continue studying was most important to her.

I talked with Mariana for a while and asked if she thought about testing her other two children, aged 13 and 10. She said that they were in good health and that only the children of her second husband had health problems. I informed her that it was possible she could have been infected even prior to meeting her first husband, so Mariana agreed to bring her other children to the hospital for testing. Fortunately, they both tested negative for HIV.

This story is praiseworthy because it shows that some people in Mozambique are aware of HIV/AIDS and are self-motivated to get tested on their own. On the other side, it is sad to know that sometimes these cases go undetected by medical professionals who do not raise the issue of HIV testing with their patients. Mariana’s story illustrates the success of our efforts to increase awareness about HIV in Mozambique, and motivates me to provide more HIV technical support and training to health staff. All sectors of society must work together to mitigate the impact of HIV in our communities.

*Name changed to protect confidentiality.

My name is Cibele Maquile and I joined the Foundation in 2007 as a care and treatment officer. I am trained as a tecnica de medicina and I have worked for Nampula Central Hospital, Save the Children, and CARE International. Professionally, I am very satisfied at the Foundation because I get the opportunity to support health staff and work directly with patients. I feel that it is my calling to support those who are most in need of help.