House of Hope in Vietnam

The ‘Mai Tam’ House of Hope in Ho Chi Minh City is a centre for HIV positive mothers and children providing vital support and care for those who are considered outcasts by Vietnamese society. Stigma for people living with AIDS is still pervasive and many survivors cannot find work, so the centre also runs income generating projects including a flower shop, a sewing workshop and a nurses training programme. The children receive education and medical support, while the centre has an additional site for the care of terminally ill patients.
Fr Bob Vitillo, Caritas Internationalis special advisor on HIV-AIDS, has just returned from a visit to Vietnam where he saw first hand the dramatic difference that this House of Hope is making to the lives of hundreds of women and children in need. He spoke with Philippa Hitchen….
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