IBM SA has launched a technology-based HIV/AIDS education and awareness programme for its own staff and those of its suppliers - using software developed by a South African adult education and training organisation, Self Empowerment International.
The software can be accessed by IBM staff as well as employees of IBM SA`s cleaning, catering, maintenance, security and gardening suppliers via two kiosks at IBM SA`s Sandton head office. The kiosks have been designed around IBM hardware.
IBM SA staff can also access the software via the IBM SA intranet.
Using voice guidance and animated graphics on a touch-screen, the software is designed for easy use by people with no computer skills.
Says Sister Gwyneth Staples, head of IBM SA`s medical centre: "We`re using technology to enhance and extend our existing HIV/AIDS education programme, because lectures or seminars simply don`t work. People either don`t want to be seen at such lectures, or they can`t organise their work schedules to fit them in.
"With the kiosk and the intranet, people can access information in their own time and at their own pace, homing in on the information that is relevant to their own circumstances.
"Also, the physical presence of the kiosk in public areas brings the whole HIV/AIDS issue into the open and starts the process of removing the stigma surrounding the condition."
Self Empowerment International has installed similar kiosks for other large South African commercial organisations and the KwaZulu-Natal government.
IBM SA human resources director, Dudu Nyamane, says the HIV/AIDS education programme is a natural extension of IBM`s long-standing commitment to the well-being of its employees, customers and the communities in which it operates.
"Experts are predicting that unless something practical is done now the pandemic will shrink the local economy by 12% by 2010.
"So, for its own sake, business should be helping with education and treatment programmes.
"But, financial considerations aside, the commercial sector`s power to positively influence the HIV/AIDS situation is immense. Through millions of employees nationwide, business can consistently reach far more South Africans than any other sector.
"So, there is a strong moral obligation for business to get involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS."
IBM SA has taken robust steps to address the pandemic, even though it has had only 15 HIV/AIDS-infected employees in the past three years.
The company`s HIV/AIDS policy has been in place since 1998, ensuring that the confidentiality of infected employees is assured, that they are given every medical assistance and that those who choose to declare their HIV status are not discriminated against, either socially or in terms of work opportunities.
An HIV/AIDS treatment programme, at an annual cost of R20 000 per person, pays for triple-therapy anti-retroviral drugs and regular monitoring by doctors and councillors. The programme, developed for IBM SA by the Innovir Institute, has succeeded in reducing HIV/AIDS-related annual sick days per person from 25 to four.
"We are committed at every level to enabling our staff to be excellent," says Nyamane. "Helping them come to grips with HIV/AIDS is vital in terms of enhancing their life skills and their ability to play a productive role at work in particular and in society generally.
"And, by making information available to our suppliers` employees via our kiosks, we can help the broader community not only find ways to cope with impact of the disease but also prevent it spreading."
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