Next morning i went to work as usual but i was nervous a bit because i had thought maybe i should step up and practice what i preach, boy; was i fooling myself for 4 hours i was staring at the computer screen and i couldn't think then during lunch hour i went to the VTC office just a floor above my office, and talked to our VTC personnel and did my HIV test, i was relaxed at that point but the 15 minutes you are waiting for your results are like a living hell, you start to look back and wonder, what did i do and when and how, blah blah the list goes on...
just a mere 15 minutes felt like a life time but i was glad i waited that "long" to know whats the next step. Phew; after the results i was encouraged to tell my friends and also encouraged people to go for free testing and counselling, it felt good to practice what i was preaching. just like in PR we talk about doing good and doing right and advocating for many causes and reasons i was compelled to share my experience as someone who was working for an AIDS foundation which advocate for the rights and also awareness on the aspect.
i hope you all will practice as you preach, put in practice what you advocate for.
5 comments:
i admire your article not because its compulsory for us to write but because i cant agree more, your nerve wrecking yet fulfilling experience takes me back to the most valuable elements on PR management like transparency and communication, and for you to stand out and share your story is a stepping stone for you , unveil for me and them , and a great quality of advocacy for your company which is what defines good PR, BRAVO!
thank you Kefilwe it takes a lot more to stand up for what you believe in and the most important thing preaching what you practice, many talk about ethics and yet they are do the total opposite of what they talk about. Public relations is more than the preaching its more into the action..
Hello! It is nice to hear from someone who is working in the field of HIV too. Even if I am in the communication department of my organisation, I still feel that sometimes the messages I want to share with the public are empty and not genuine because I am most of the time talking about things I have never experienced. Good examples are telling parents how to talk to their children, telling people how to react when they learn they are HIV positive and pretend I understand what they are going through. But during my internship, I tried to participate in some of the other activities related to the work of the NGO. Also, PILS has a program that encourages people living with HIV/AIDS to receive a training and approach those who are not yet receiving treatment. In this way, the trainers feel that their contribution is valued and the patients know that there are people who truly understand them.
Once again, nice post.
hey Smolly!i just read your article and all i can say is we should all practice what we preach.I reading some book that a persuasive person is one that looks the part,is trustworthy and is able to talk to people and market or sell what ever he or she wants them to do..This is what we all learn in PR.To be able to persuade people into following your company or just merely taking an HIV TEST,you should be persuasive and like you said,you should believe n what you are selling or have done it so they follow in your footsteps.i loved your post dear...thank you for sharing
thanks Visha and Kitso, it takes a lot of initiative to do as you say to others.Visha, where i was working i was working the organisation is community based, it helps the infected and the affected and the good thing is they make sure that they involve their clients as part of their campaigns and to also share information and to educate them about HIV/AIDS. sometimes when i went out for the outreach work were we taught people on HIV/AIDS some people even gave us stares and some avoided us thinking we were HIV positive which shows a lot on how many Malaysians are still unaware of how HIV is spread and how or what is it. it is disappointing that most people look at it as a shameful diseases whereas if affects everyone and can infect anyone regardless of social status, rich or poor, African, Asian or European or any other. very few parents here in Malaysia are even open to talking about HIV/AIDS or sexually related issues. it is such a shame that most people still shy6 away from issues like these.
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