A consultation was held yesterday at the Guyana Marriott Hotel in Kingston on the updating of the National HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy.
The forum was held by the Ministry of Health’s, National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS) in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Ministry of Labour.
A release from the Ministry of Health that the objective of the consultation was to update the current policy that was developed in 2009, to eradicate stigma and discrimination among HIV/AIDS persons in the workplace.
Programme Manager of NAPS, Dr Tariq Jagnarine said in his remarks that there is a need to emphasise education and awareness within organisations for increased knowledge and eradicate stigma and discrimination from within work settings.
“Our workplace must become centres of knowledge equally with (education) not only on HIV prevention, transmitting and treatment but other health related issues such as mental health, chronic diseases and current issues in our societies. By fostering a culture of understanding, we can disparage misconception and most importantly eradicate stigma and discrimination from organisations”, Dr Jagnarine said.
He added that comprehensive workplace policies that cater for the prevention, treatment care and support for employees affected by HIV/AIDs illnesses must be developed to address issues such as confidentiality, non-discrimination, access to health care and reasonable accommodation.
Deputy Resident Representa-tive of the United Nations, Stephanie Ziebell, said that her organisation is happy to partner with the ministry and will continue to provide services needed to eliminate the stigma and discrimination against HIV/AIDs persons.
“It is envisioned that the policy will contribute to the inclusion of fair and equal treatment and better conditions in workplaces across the country”, Ziebell said, according to the release.
Also, present at the event were, Occupational Safety and Health Officer attached to the Ministry of Labour, Zeza King; Food Bank Manager attached to NAPS, Nazim Hussain; Social Services Coordinator, Nafeeza Ally; Consultant, Gina Arjoon; Senior M&E Officer attached to NAPS, Murvin Chalmers among other staff from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Labour, the Guyana Police and Prison services and UNDP.
