Siti dedicates herself to HIV patients
Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura
A patient infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) lay helplessly in a hospital room in Jayapura, Papua, screaming in pain every night. She was isolated from non-HIV positive patients, and medical personnel used gloves to examine her frail body in the morning and afternoons.
Siti Nurdjaja Soltief, 34, can recall clearly the experience and empathize with the patient, who had been a model student when she studied with Siti at university in Jayapura six years ago.
Her suffering and the discrimination she received prompted Siti to comfort her after nursing duties.
"I treated her like the other patients -- without gloves -- and I talked to her because nobody had approached her like a friend. She was abandoned due to the social stigmatization that follows HIV infection," the nurse told The Jakarta Post.
Devoting the rest of her time to accompanying her friend, Siti boosted her morale by telling her to accept her state with resignation and get closer to God.
"I told her there was no reason to shout in pain as it would not relieve her. She just needed to calm down and remember God."
After six months, the patient died and Siti took care of her funeral. The experience aroused her curiosity about HIV, which causes the onset of AIDS.
Siti says HIV patients should be helped by engaging them in positive activities instead of discriminating against them.
Her increasing interest in HIV/AIDS irritated her boyfriend, Robert Sihombing. "Why are you so keen on caring for such patients? You'll get infected yourself," said Siti, quoting Robert.
She then explained the ailment to Robert, who had known Siti for 11 years. Now they manage the Jayapura Support Group for people living with HIV/AIDS.
Since becoming familiar with HIV six years ago, Siti and the group have looked after at least 100 patients who have contracted the illness in Jayapura, 60 of whom have died, with 40 others currently receiving counseling. "Four, with no family in Jayapura, stay with me while helping counsel their fellows," Siti said.
She is assisted by seven volunteers -- all paramedics that visit the HIV positive people daily. "After finishing my hospital chores, I see HIV patients with the volunteers every day; my hobby has shifted from swimming or angling to counseling HIV patients" she said laughing.
The counseling, Siti said was needed because the disease was as yet incurable and those affected by HIV were often isolated before their eventual death, leading to despair and suicidal tendencies.
"We advise them that though the virus cannot yet be medically eradicated, through better knowledge of their illness they still have a chance to improve the quality of their life, such as by giving up bad habits, including a promiscuous lifestyle," she said.
Siti's devotion to the care of people living with HIV/AIDS has invited both scorn and acclaim. Her initial involvement triggered the rumor that she was an HIV sufferer herself, which became widespread as her enthusiasm heightened and her voluntary work increased.
The rumor even made her boyfriend suspicious, and she felt compelled to undergo an HIV/AIDS test. "As the blood test result was negative, the rumor soon faded away and Robert believed I was all right," she said. Despite the contempt, Siti gained fame among volunteers, first in Papua, then nationwide and in other countries.
She was invited to two world meetings to describe HIV/AIDS cases and their handling in Papua; the 14th International AIDS Congress in Chiang Mai in 2001 and the 15th in Bangkok, Thailand, this year.
Praise has also come from colleagues and social institutions. In 2002, Siti, another nurse from Jakarta's Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital, and three journalists, were given Sido Muncul Awards for their services to humanity.
Siti was moved and proud. "I appreciated the award, though my devotion to people living with HIV-AIDS owes more to humanitarian motives than the need for recognition or awards," she said.
"Everybody knows Siti; the term 'HIV/AIDS' is often associated with her," Vanwi, a Papuan journalist, said.
Posters with the images of Siti, artist and activist Nurul Arifin, Papuan singer Edo Kondologit and Papua Deputy Governor Constant Karma can be found on main roads in Jayapura and other Papuan cities as part of the campaign against HIV/AIDS.
After finishing her high school studies in Jayapura in 1988, Siti took a three-year nursing program at Cenderawasih University in Jayapura.
She now lives with her parents in the house that also serves as the Jayapura Support Group counseling center.