A day in the life of a vaccine educator

Central to the success of the testing of an HIV/ AIDS vaccine are the vaccine educators. IZELLE THEUNISSEN spoke to the three vaccine educators located at the MRC.

The SAAVI vaccine educators are Petronella Goliath (standing, right), Laurentia Ogle and Tshilidzi Tuwane (sitting).

The vaccine educators do exactly what their title says: they go out into the community and educate people about what a vaccine is, what it's going to do and how it's going to affect them.

This takes a special kind of individual, and this is exactly what I found when I interviewed Petronella Goliath, Laurentia Ogle and Tshilidzi Tuwane.

You can't imagine three people more different. Coming from different parts of the country and each having their own educational background, they have one thing in common: a passion for people.

Laurentia didn't even know what a vaccine was when she came to the MRC, but she found that her previous job experience and qualifications (she was a receptionist at a private hospital and then a community relations consultant for a telecommunications company) helped her interact with sometimes skeptical communities.

It's quite a challenge communicating a highly technical innovation to people with mostly no scientific background. Tshilidzi says: "The most difficult part of my job is to explain scientific terms such as placebo-controlled research to the community in a language they can understand. The comic books, training manuals and brochures produced by SAAVI help a lot because they are written in simple English."

Petronella finds that people generally know something about vaccines, but HIV vaccines are a new concept. "I always start my explanation by using something they are familiar with, such as the vaccines they received as chilren.

We then build on that knowledge through group discussions, working step-by-step and allowing feedback and input," she explains.

The educators agree that they are always warmly received, although Tshilidzi says that he is very often asked whether the community was going to be used as guineapigs. "But people are tired of seeing the consequences of AIDS in their communities and they want to do something," he says.

Laurentia says she has heard communities say that they are tired of hearing the basics about HIV/ AIDS - they want to hear something new. She also raises an interesting issue. "Many communities are concerned that the scientists are wasting money, time and energy since this is a preventative vaccine which will benefit HIV negative people only."

However, people seem to appreciate that the educators are communicating with them about the vaccine research. "They often ask what the other research organizations are doing and why their research is not communicated," says Laurentia.

How do the educators get into the communities? "My first introduction will be through HIV/ AIDS organizations that are already involved in the community. I start by asking for a platform to introduce our organization and explain our aims. This will be followed by a request to build a working relationship. An action plan will then be developed," explains Petronella.

Laurentia says being placed at one of the trial sites (in Durban) is an advantage for her. "I have worked closely with the trial site staff, and in this way I have learnt a lot in a short time. I also arrange seminars for target groups where I call on the scientists to come and explain certain topics," she says.

The educators all agree that men don't attend the seminars and that this is quite a challenge. "If the community requests a seminar, you'll find that 99% of attendees are female. When I initiate a seminar or workshop, I always ask for equal representation, but this never happens," says Laurentia.

The educators all love their job. Laurentia says she loves being exposed to both worlds: the scientific and the community. Adds Petronella: "I enjoy educating the scientists about the community. Also the participation of the community and their appreciation for our programme."

Tshilidzi is philosophical: "The HIV/ Aids vaccine is an innovation that is aimed at solving the biggest problem the world has ever faced. I like being involved with the people coming up with a strategy to solve the problem - especially here in South Africa, where I was born."

• Do you want to infect all of us by injecting us with the virus?
• Who are the scientists in South Africa and how can they be sure of finding a vaccine when the guys in America couldn't find one?
• Why don't you test the vaccine on prisoners?
• Why don't you test the vaccine on unconscious people who are going to die anyway?