Behaviour change -- measured by the community, for the community. Community counselling.

PIP: Community counseling is a process that supports the community to act assertively and confidently in its own interests to provide support for those affected by HIV/AIDS and to reduce the spread of HIV. Hope is fundamental in initiating this process and should begin by rendering care and support to individuals affected by HIV/AIDS. Care and support helps generate a sense of self worth and confidence which in turn motivates the recipients to take personal responsibility in preventing further spread of HIV. Moreover, care stimulates awareness and illustrates a commitment to non-discrimination against those infected, or at high risk. Another key aspect of community counseling is a commitment to monitoring changes in high-risk behavior. This process involves identifying high-risk behaviors, choosing strategies for prevention, and recognizing and recording ways of showing that these risk behaviors are changing. In conclusion, community counseling is facilitated by the skills and training from outside the community, and the community decides the content. This process allows monitoring of behavioral change and is a way of sustaining it.^ieng