HIV/AIDS Deaths Dip ..but ......................

WORLD AIDS Day is being recognised today under the theme, 'On a mission to zero new HIV infections', and Jamaica is celebrating significant declines in the rate of the disease in the island.

Statistics from the Ministry of Health indicate that there have been significant declines in a number of areas since 2006. The number of reported AIDS deaths has decreased since the introduction of public access to antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). Three hundred and thirty-three AIDS deaths were reported in 2010, compared to 665 in 2004.

This represents a 50 per cent decrease in AIDS deaths since the inception of Universal Access to ARVs in 2004, and a 46 per cent decrease when compared to 2000.

among most successful

In his message, Health Minister Dr Fenton Ferguson said Jamaica's HIV programme has been lauded as being among the most successful in the Latin American and Caribbean region.

"Over the years, the programme has employed important and workable strategies to achieve this. Increased access to testing, improved HIV surveillance and increased awareness about HIV among the general population," he said.

Speaking at the launch of a joint workplace policy yesterday between three ministries, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Reginald Budhan, said the stigmatisation of HIV victims has lessened.

"Much of this is obviously the result of greater public awareness and the HIV/AIDS awareness sessions held at various workplaces over the years. We are still mindful of the fact that we still have a serious problem and I think this is reflected in this year's world HIV/AIDS theme," he said.

The event which took place at the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce also included the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy &. Mining and the foreign affairs ministry.

But with the suspicious treatment failure issues since last year and the repeated reports of deaths of persons who have been adhering to their regimens with some persons on the latest anti retroviral drugs on the market including Atripla and Truvada one wonders why the silence on this issue by the non governmental organizations of the national systems via the ministry of health, why the secrecy despite the agitation on Mya 1st this year by same at the Ministry of Health offices on King Street, the protests open or otherwise towards the Global Fund and the depleting finds for local efforts in the HIV response 

Complaints have also been coming regarding the uncaring stance of some general practitioners within some NGOs who have been prescribing older regimes for HIV positive MSMs in particular  and all kinds of other side effects coming from those including older drugs such as Kaletra despite the complaints, why are doctors not really paying attention?

Is it time to change the regimes all together?

With the issues to do with MSM homelessess and a 2007 MSM survey that clearly suggested a link between that category of persons along with commercial sex work as an income generating means for that population coupled with the lack of the proper social interventions with the necessary self efficacious, personal developmental and character building interventions to deal with same in order to assist persons to be on their way to some semblance of normalcy or to re-integrate into general society after their respective homophobic or homo-negative event one wonders if getting to zero will be a realistic goal here?

The 2010/1 study results are being prepared and already the early findings seem deem.

I think we need to get real and public relations campaign overlooking the realities on the ground won't help any.

Minister of Health Dr Fenton Ferguson speaking at a function recently carried the line that buggery should be repealed for health reasons and not the genuine reasons which is privacy for consenting adults which I would much prefer, to simply be forced to capitulate in a sense due to high rates of infections in marginalised groups after all these years of dilly dallying and due to pressure from external forces is indeed sad.

My other problem with calling for buggery to be removed not as a right for persons to be who they are in terms of same gender loving men getting the freedom to practice anal sex if they so desire but the unproven and widely held beleif that the present government was funded by some invisible LGBT hand somewhere is an ethical challenge for me, do not give me or my brothers and sisters rights simply because the political establishment is basically bought for a buck.

Rights must be fought for and granted fair and square not granted due to pressure and not as a matter of principle with consequences and possible reversals later with tacit almost confirmation that HIV is a gay disease due to the high infection rates according to studies over the years and poor ground work by the very advocacies that have DIRECT access to the population especially on the social scenes but yet none of them show up to do the work needed on any consistent basis, then the public is told that MSMs do not have access to condoms, treatment and care yet six agencies including ones linked to the very anti gay groups have gotten funding to work in MSMs community and have delivered the very "lack of access" condoms."

There is just too much politics and controversy surrounding HIV/MSM work just on the face of it for me.

Peace and tolerance

H