Topsy Foundation NPC

Dear Topsy Supporters,

Thank you for taking the time to find out more about the organisation that you choose to support. We are glad to have the chance to show you the results of your amazing support. Today I would like to share with you a story of the love and strength of one of the “Gogos” (Grandmothers) in our Orphaned and Vulnerable Children Programme.

This is about Gogo Patience (not her true name) in the words of her Social Worker, Heleen Venter:

“Patience is a grandmother of two children of which the youngest one is a patient at Topsy. The children’s mother passed away some time ago. They are extremely poor and it is so cold in their house.

I wanted to share something very remarkable which I have never seen before. Patience is 70 years old and as you can see in the photo, she is disabled. She walks with great difficulty and the only way she can move around is with two old crutches. It looked as if she may have had Polio when she was little. Yet with all of this - you must see this lady taking care of her two orphans. When she does their washing she fills a bucket  of  water, puts it on her head  and starts walking with this very heavy load and disabled legs with two wooden crutches, to the outside of her house to work outside on the grass. It seems effortless, and she did it perfectly, but can you imagine the weight and burden for this old Gogo to just do a normal daily task.

She is always so thankful and an example for so many people. She loves these two grandchildren so much, and taking care of them in such a simple but special way.

Today we gave the little girl some warm clothing on her visit to the clinic (not the hat and scarf in the picture) and to the family 3 double bed blankets. They were very, very happy. Life is not always fair but full of lessons for those who are experiencing a situation, and sometimes even more for those who observe the situation.

These are the lessons that I see. I choose two learn and try to be someone better than I was the day before. Topsy changes me every day. I thank God for it.”

The Topsy programmes are child-centred and the overall aims of the organisation are to strengthen the family and community and result in the involvement of more community members by creating a sense of ownership and long-term sustainability through;

•  The holistic care of orphaned and vulnerable children;

• The provision of food security to communities threatened by malnutrition;

• Income generation to help alleviate poverty.

At Topsy, we have a future vision of flourishing rural communities, where a generation of young people, who in spite of the impact of HIV/AIDS, are productive participants in society.

Warm Regards

Sharon Pruss
Donor Relationship Manager

Links:

• Topsy's New Website

Dear Topsy Supporters, 

I am happy to bring to you this latest report from the field. I would like to tell you about one of the important projects that we run through our free Comprehensive HIV and AIDS Care Clinic. It is the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) project.

The transmission of HIV from mother to child is a facet of this epidemic that has received a lot of international attention – both because the prevalence of mother to child transmission has been worryingly high in some regions (particularly Southern Africa) and secondly because there are highly effective medicines and treatment protocols available to ensure the HIV negative status of the child.

At the Topsy Foundation Clinic we employ the best practice in prevention of transmission by using an end-to-end process to take the mother and child through all stages from conception, through pregnancy and the birth to feeding. When this protocol is followed, with the assistance of the medical and social work professionals at our Clinic, then success is made possible. Throughout the time that we have had this project in place, we have had great successes, and in each case where the mother complied with the process, the child was born free of HIV.

Before the introduction of treatment and methods to prevent mother to child transmission there was a very high incidence rate of infection from mother to child internationally – up to 40%. Over time, with treatment this has dropped to as low as 2.8%. (South African Medical Journal, Vol 102, 2012.)

The national rate of infant exposure to HIV in South Africa is 32%. However, with the availability of treatment at clinics like Topsy, the national weighted prevalence of HIV infection amongst infants in South Africa is 1.5% - with the 2 highest rates of infection being in 2 provinces: Mpumalanga (3%) and Free State (2.4%). It is precisely because these 2 provinces are deeply affected by the impact of HIV and AIDS that Topsy has chosen to focus our efforts here. (South African Department of Health).

It is our policy to offer treatment and support to all of our patients who may be pregnant and to induct them into our PMTCT programme (which like our other services is free of charge). This is highly important, given that in our provinces only +- 56% of known HIV positive mothers are able to access this treatment.

We continue to offer this treatment and guidance to HIV positive mothers on preventing transmission to their child, throughout the pregnancy and thereafter.

We deeply value your support in helping us to do this.

Thank you for all that you have given that has made this possible.

Warm Regards 

Helen MacKenzie

Communications Manager

Links:

• Find out more about what we do