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Students taught how to play the game safely
Melanie Peters. 25 January 2004. The Sunday Argus. Republished courtesy of Independent Newspapers (Pty) Ltd.
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Thousands of young people fresh out of school are about to enter a whole new world of campus life with lots of partying - and a lethal cocktail of sex, drugs, booze - and HIV/AIDS.
The danger is that even if students know the dangers of getting HIV/AIDS through unprotected sex, consuming alcohol or drugs could reduce their inhibitions and cloud their judgment.
As part of their initiation this year, university, technikon and college students throughout South Africa will be able to take part in an interactive computer game called Your Moves - to be a player, or a life-stayer.
It was launched this week by the Higher Education AIDS Initiative's Programme (HEAID) to curb HIV infection among students and staff in higher education.
About 7 000 copies of the game, which poses some of the complex life choices young people face, will be distributed at all South Africa's universities and technikons during orientation in the next few weeks.
Development of the CD-Rom involved input from experts and students in tertiary institutions. Using actors and situations students face, the game encourages the user to make a choice which in turn displays a screen showing the likely consequences of such a choice.
At the end, a risk assessment is given based on the choices the student or staff member has made.
The project has been backed by the South African University Vice Chancellors' Association and the Committee of Technikon Principals.
Barbara Michel, programme director of the Higher Education HIV and AIDS Programme, said the challenging and controversial CD-Rom would be part of South Africa's comprehensive higher-education strategy on HIV/AIDS.
She said it would also be shown at big screen events as well as be part of psychology training and technology skills development and be available in libraries and clinics for individual student use.
Michel said life was about choices. "It's about self respect and behaving with consideration towards others. But because these simple choices aren't always made, the highest infection rates for HIV in southern Africa are among young people."
She said statistics showed that a girl aged 15 to 24 was 2.5 times more likely to be infected than her male counterparts. The highest rates of infection were among girls aged 13 to 19, followed by boys aged 16 to 25.
"There is already a cure for HIV; it requires no money, no clever scientists. It's called behaviour change. Without behaviour change we risk HIV/AIDS mutation through resistance to drugs and unprotected sex. Without behaviour change we may render a future vaccine ineffective."
HEAIDS works to prevent, manage and eliminate HIV infection, and to promote care and support, learning and research, in tertiary institutions.
Students and staff from tertiary institutions around the country, the South African University Vice Chancellors' Association with the Committee of Technikon Principals and the Department of Education created HEAIDS in 2001 to prevent, manage, and mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS at campuses.
HEAIDS helps build the capacity to measure the pandemic; to create quality HIV/AIDS policies which protect the rights of staff and students; and to promote an environment for more effective service delivery and implementation. |
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