As part of its 15th anniversary, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), has launched a campaign against HIV-related stigma in Accra.
The launch was under the theme “Saving Lives Through the American Generosity. HIV Stigma and Discrimination kill faster – Stop it!”
With this campaign, PEPFAR Ghana seeks to fight the stigma often levelled against persons living with HIV.
Media specialist at PEPFAR Ghana, Dzid Enyonam Kwame, indicated that stigmatization begins with the caregivers who diagnose persons living with HIV.
According to their research and encounters, some caregivers disclose the status of HIV patients they are familiar with to others, breaching the discretionary privilege the patient is entitled to.
“As caregivers, it is important that we don’t stigmatize persons living with HIV. For our PEPFAR 15th, we decided that we needed to touch base with caregivers. Even the way the folders are marked with colour codes for persons living with HIV, a new window where they take their anti-retroviral drugs, among others.
“Sometimes, some caregivers call on Doctors or other nurses to attend to Persons Living with HIV. So amongst the caregivers, you stigmatize those who have direct contact with persons living with HIV, which is so wrong. Yes, you need to protect yourself but you don’t overdo it so the other person feels stigmatized.”
She added that stigmatization is what is preventing people from getting tested for the disease.
“Because of stigma, we are unable to achieve the first 90 of the UNAIDS goals for HIV/AIDS and we are saying that by 2020, this should be done. So if people are not testing, how can we achieve the first 90, to talk of moving on to the next 90? So Ghana will always backtrack and it will derail our efforts”.
PEPFAR was set up on January 28, 2003 by then US President, George W. Bush to help combat the virus globally whilst also supporting persons living with the virus.
Four months later, on May 27, the U.S Congress acted swiftly, passing bipartisan legislation that authorized PEPFAR.
The group then set up in Ghana five years later, to continue its campaign in the West African country.
Their message in brief
The anti-stigma campaign and discrimination campaign involves showing love to persons living with HIV and iterating that stigma is more dangerous.
If stigmatization continues, people who live with HIV will not be willing to disclose their status, resulting in them being unable to receive treatment for the disease early enough.
Not knowing their status also means carriers can inadvertently infect others with HIV, frustrating Ghana’s efforts towards achieving UNAIDS’ goal of 90-90-90 within the stipulated time frame.
UNAIDS projects that by 2020, 90% of all people living with HIV will know their HIV status, 90% of all people with diagnosed HIV infection will receive sustained antiretroviral therapy and 90% of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy will have viral suppression.
PEPFAR says, “let us ‘stamp out stigma’ while we continue to foster stronger partnerships and collaboration ultimately aimed at accelerating efforts to ending the HIV epidemic by 2030”.
HIV Statistics
Statistics from the Ghana AIDS Commission indicate that about 300,000 people have been infected with HIV.
Out of this number, about 28,000 are youth, with over 200,000 being adults. The Commission has also indicated that 15,000 deaths have been recorded from the disease.
–
By: Bervelyn Longdon | citinewsroom.com |Ghana | berviedon@gmail.com