Plovdiv, April 28 and 29 2015
The first training that the Bulgarian Family Planning and Sexual Health Association (BFPA) conducted under the project Prisons without risk – a pilot initiative for preventing the distribution of blood transmitted and sexually transmitted diseases in three selected Bulgarian prisons took place for the staff in Plovdiv prison on April 28-29, 2015.
Presentations on topics connected with blood-transmitted and sexual transmitted infections with focus on prevention, as well knowledge about the specifics of the HIV infection were shown. Special attention was paid to the way of work with people living with HIV. The staff was presented general information about viruses, treatment and vaccines.
In discussions on topics during the two days some questions were raised. Here are some of them:
- Why have the bactericidal lamps disappeared?
- Are there any side effects of vaccinations, what exactly are they?
- Why creating a collective immunity is important?
- Should prison staff be informed of illnesses that prisoners have?
- Why are tattoo studios still without hygienic control?
- After having been ill of what kind of diseases one cannot be a blood donor?
- Why not interrupting the therapy of HIV positive is important also for the safety of others in prison?
An opportunity for voluntary and anonymous counseling and testing on HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C was given. The virologist Prof. Radka Argirova, the health consultant of BFPA Daniela Dikova and the chairman of Hope against AIDS Milen Chavrov trained 50 persons, staff in Plovdiv prison.
The project’s duration is 14 months (March 2015 – April 2016). Its aim is to improve the health status of persons serving sentence of "imprisonment" and detainees through active re-socializing activities related to the provision of services and information to improve health awareness of vulnerable communities in prisons in Plovdiv, Stara Zagora and Sliven.
This publication is created with financial support from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2009-2014. The entire responsibility for the contents of the document is of BFPA and under no circumstances can be assumed that this document presents official opinion of the Programme Operator or the donor.
