Unisa Yogya Lecturers Optimise HIV-Talks Website Through Empowerment of Dasawisma Seruni Ngaran Cadres
A team of lecturers from Universitas ‘Aisyiyah Yogyakarta (Unisa Yogyakarta) has conducted a community service programme titled ’Optimisation of the HIV-Talks Website by Dasawisma Seruni Ngaran Cadres for HIV/AIDS Prevention among Preconception Adolescents’. The programme, funded through the Diktisaintek grant scheme, runs for a full year throughout 2026, from programme planning to monitoring and evaluation.
The programme aims to empower the community, particularly health cadres, to utilise the HIV-Talks website (hivtalks.unisayogya.ac.id) as an educational resource for preconception adolescents in efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS. The preconception phase is considered an important investment phase to prepare women for future pregnancy.
Dr Dhesi Ari Astuti, head of the community service team, said one of the problems frequently faced by adolescents today is the lack of access to valid reproductive health information sources. This situation makes the role of HIV cadres important as an extension of health workers to reach adolescents more closely and intensively.
‘This activity is a sustainable programme carried out by the Unisa Yogyakarta lecturer team, consisting of Dr Sulistyaningsih and Prof Dwi Sulisworo. The community service team is multidisciplinary, covering maternal and child health, public health, and health technology,’ said Dhesi.
The main activities were carried out directly in three stages. The first stage was the socialisation of the HIV-Talks website held on 26 July 2026, targeting community leaders from the hamlet, neighbourhood association (RW), and Dasawisma levels, with 60 participants.
The second stage was training for 10 HIV cadres of Dasawisma Seruni conducted in August 2026. In this training, the cadres were equipped with the ability to operate and utilise the HIV-Talks website as an educational medium. This stage was followed by further socialisation about the HIV-Talks website and the role of cadres to 60 participants, the majority of whom were adolescents.
The activities did not stop at the training and socialisation stages. The Unisa Yogyakarta lecturer team also conducted monitoring and evaluation to ensure the sustainability of the HIV-Talks website utilisation by cadres in the field.
Dhesi expressed hope that the programme can continue independently by the community, which has been equipped with adequate knowledge and communication skills. ‘The hope is that the community is willing and able to access health services, so that an empowered community is realised,’ she said.