The Ten Practises of AIDS Competence
  • Acknowledgement and Recognition
  • Inclusion
  • Linking care and prevention
  • Access to Treatment
  • Identify and address vulnerability
  • Gender
  • Learning and Transfer
  • Measuring change and adapting our response
  • Ways of working
  • Mobilising resources

Read (or download) an interview with Usa Duongsaa on the background to the changes.

View the updated Self Assessment Framework

Download the updated Self Assessment Framework.

An updated version of the Self Assessment Framework is available from 1 July 2007

The update reflects the observations of coaches based on their experiences over the last 2 years. These thoughts were brought together by a group of Thai coaches (Usa Duongsaa, Pimpawan Kheyata, Sirinate Piyajitpirat, Orratai Rhucharoenpornpanich, Lawan Vejapikul and Dusit Duangsa) who met in Chiang Mai to consider all of the suggestions. Their proposal has now been reviewed and agreed by all of the Constellation coaches and the new Self Assessment framework will be used for the ADB and GLIA partnerships.

The changes

The most important change is the introduction of 'Gender' as a separate practise. The number of practises has been kept at 10 however, because 'Measuring Change' and 'Adapting our Response' have been merged into a single practise. In addition, there have been more subtle changes to the thinking behind the practises of 'Inclusion' and 'Access to treatment'

Gender: A new practise

The Group decided that the issue of Gender was so important that it justified its own practise. The issue could be dealt with by asking, "What about men and women?" for each practise, but the importance of the issue has now been recognised and crystalised by the separate practise.

Measuring Change and Adapting our Response; Two merged practises

The group felt that these 2 practises went hand in hand. "It would be strange if you went to the trouble of measuring your change and you did not adapt your response on the basis of the measurement", explained Usa.

Access to Treatment

The levels for the practise. 'Access to Treatment' have been modified so that access to ARVs appears in Level 4 and Level 5, while the lower levels refer to more basic treatments.

Inclusion

This practise has been widened beyond the original focus of inclusion of individuals living with HIV and their families to include other groups. Coaches had observed that frequently people living with HIV and their families were included, but that others such as faith based leaders, community leaders or government agencies were not.

Final thought

Overall, the group concluded that the last revision made by Jean-Louis Lamboray and Faby Ngeruka had been comprehensive and their own efforts were relatively minor changes to that revision. The Thai group of coaches had rejected the idea of addressing specific actions for each level of each practise and had maintained in their definitions the principle of flexibility

On 19 June, Usa Duongsaa, speaking for the group, discussed the thinking that sits behind the changes. This article is based on that interview.
Read a full transcript of the interview here. (link)
Download or listen to an mp3 version of the interview here. (link)
Read the new version of the Self Assessment framework. (link)
Download the new version of the Self Assessment framework. (link)