We left Rosemary’s village to visit an even smaller, more remote village area. Here we met Elizabeth and her family. Again the family told us of the "miracle of ARVs" and urged us to bring more medicines so that others could receive treatment and return to better health. And while many others are taking ARVs in town/city/settlement type environments, the environments in which HBAC is taking place are the very same environments where the detractors from the WHO 3X5 Initiative believe no one will participate in care. What the Uganda government has discovered is that if people are sick, they are sick at home. If Uganda is to be successful, most Ugandans living with HIV will need to receive services in their homes, hence, home based AIDS care.

After our brief visit with Elizabeth, the film crew arrived to interview her for the documentary. Several of us took this opportunity to meet some of the other villagers. Every one we met told us they too were sick and needed medicine. They wanted to know when the medicines would be available to treat everyone in the village. We explained that Elizabeth was part of a project to make certain that the medicine worked and when they had the assurances—the medicine would be available to everyone who needed it. This answer seemed satisfactory as the villagers resumed their activities.

After visiting with individuals families, our delegation reconvened at the Mbale District office of the AIDS Information Centre. AIC was established in 1990 as the first HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) program in Africa. Through more than 75 sites in 27 districts, AIC provides HIV counseling and testing, syphilis testing and treatment, diagnosis and treatment for other sexually transmitted infections, and family planning services. Dr. Hitimana Lukanika, AIC’s executive director gave us a brief overview of their services and presented a client profile: 22% of first time testers were positive for HIV in 2002. 50% had less than primary education and 21% of the clients tested as couples. Sero-positivity is very high among children below 12, 25%. AIC served more than 110,000 in 2002, up from 70,000 in 2001. Dr. Lukanika told our delegation that AICs are the most important source of community-based support and counseling for both HIV positive and HIV negative young people across Uganda.