Here are a sample of the cases we handle. Names have been changed to maintain anonymity.

Ah Huat - Single and addicted to Domicum
Johnny - Widowed father with 2 kids
Thambypillai - Ex-convict with new hope
Ali - Vicious circle of broken family
Phillip - One visit too many

AH HUAT - REVIEWED ON 31.05.2004

Social Situation

Ah Huat is single.  His parents are divorced. He has no more contact with his mother.  He has a younger sister who is married.  His father is remarried with an eight-year-old daughter.  His relationship with his father has not been good and he is also not close to his sister. 

Ah Huat has not been a well-adjusted person.  He has problems with Dormicum addiction.  He claims he requires Dormicum, as he feels depressed about his illness.  So far, he has blamed his unemployment on his HIV illness.  He does not seem motivated to do something about getting a hold on himself and moving on.

Financial Situation

Ah Huat was released from the prison in Sep 2003.  He claimed to be in prison then for fighting.  Ever since his release, he has not been able to obtain a stable job.  He opened a food stall with his sister but the business folded after some disagreement with his sister.  Central Singapore CDC gives him $260 per month.  CPF withdrawal (about $2000+) was made in late Feb 2004 and the money has been released.  He claims to have almost finished using his money.  He is not covered by DPS.

Treatment

Ah Huat has been seeking treatment at NCC but is not compliant with his follow-up.  He sees his physician, Dr Monteiro in CDC and often request for Dormicum.  His request is usually turned down as CDC does not dispense Dormicum.  He is not on ART.

Accommodation

After he was released from the prison, his father helped him to obtain a rental room and was helping to pay for the rent.  However, Ah Huat was asked to leave the place in Apr 2004 after falling out with his father.  He went to Central Singapore CDC for help and subsequently was referred to MSW.  CARE agreed to take in Ah Huat.

Recommendation

Ah Huat needs a place to stay.  He also requires proper guidance in life.  

 Social Situation

Mr Johnny is divorced (subsequently widowed) with 2 daughters who are in their secondary school.  His daughters are under the guardian of his in-laws.  Mr Johnny has been staying with his eldest sister, Mary all along.  His relationship with his family has been good and they have been supportive of him.

Financial Situation

Mr Johnny has been working as a contract-worker for the past few years.  His health has been poor last Sep 2003.  He has hoping to obtain a job after he improves.  Meanwhile, he has been depending on his sister who provides him with food and lodging.  His sisters also agreed to support him for his HIV medication.

He plans to withdraw his CPF monies to support himself and his HIV medication.

Treatment

Mr Johnny was tested HIV positive in 1998 after an admission to a Malaysia hospital.  He only started being followed-up by CDC in Sep 2003.  However, he has not been compliant with his medication and his health deteriorated.  He has recently been started on ART and he promised to be compliant on his medication.

Accommodation

Mr Johnny has been staying with his sister, Mary, prior to admission.  After knowing his diagnosis, his sisters were concerned but Mary agreed to take him home.  On the same day when he returned home, he was admitted again for fever.  His family is concerned if his sister, Mary can look after him.  Mary has heart problems and needs to look after her grand-children.  They are not confident of Mary managing him at home.

Recommendation

The family have discussed with Mr Johnny.  They hope he can be admitted to CARE Housing until he improves.  They do not intend to abandon him there but will continue to support him financially for his medications.  They also agreed to take him home once he has regained his health.

Mr Thambypillai is a 46-year old man and had just been released from prison. He is single and lives apart from his family. He has 4 other siblings and they help to care for his elderly mother who is wheelchair-bound. His siblings are aware of his diagnosis and are supportive of him.

Financial Situation

Mr Thambypillai is currently unemployed but he is trying to find a job to support himself. His sisters are giving him some pocket money to help him out temporarily.

Treatment

Mr Thambypillai was diagnosed with HIV in August 2004 and is on regular follow up with the doctors in CDC.

Accommodation

Mr Thambypillai used to stay with his mother, sister and brother in a 5-room flat. Since his released from prison in October 2004, he has decided to stay apart as he does not want to inconvenient them. Mr Thambypillai is keen to start life a new and hopes that someone would be able to help supervise him. He had initially thought about halfway houses but decided otherwise due to his medical condition.

Recommendation

Mr Thambypillai hopes to start life anew and is keen to stay in CARE housing, until he has stabilized.   

Mr Ali is married and is staying with his wife, Mdm Ida, in a rental flat.   He is not close to his family of origin and has minimal contact with his siblings.  He was taken care by relatives since young and he left home at the age of 11.

His relationship with wife has been strained since early 2003.  He was unhappy with his wife for not working and has to depend on him for maintenance.  He also suspected his wife dating other men too.  Recently, his wife admitted that she has a boyfriend and has filed for a divorce in late 2003.

According to his wife, she is frustrated with Mr Ali for his unreasonable behaviour and irresponsibility.  He sold away their household appliances and squandered the money on cigarettes and alcohol.  She also caught him stealing money from her wallet. 

Mr Ali would come home drunk and they would quarrel eventually.  At times, police was alerted as Mr Ali threatened her with knife.  She did not press charges against him in view of his medical condition.  She did not apply for personal protection order too.

Consequently, Mr Ali was not allowed to go home and has to seek refuge at CDC.  He is homeless and has no shelter.

At the Clinic, Phillip's test result was negative. However, he was told that he had to wait out the six months "window period" to be really sure he had not contracted the disease. 

Phillip revealed that he began paying for sex at the brothel to fill the emotional void when he broke up with his girlfriend. One visit led to the next and before long he was hooked. It didn't help that the brothel was conveniently located along the way to his office.

The six months