ARV Programme a Success. 16/10/10
Latest ARV treatment has much fewer side effects
16 October 2010
Windhoek — Government, through the Ministry of Health and Social Services in close partnership with civil society, the private sector and development partners, has implemented a highly successful anti-retroviral (ARV) programme over the past decade, health minister, Dr Richard Kamwi, said.
Kamwi was speaking at the opening of the Consultation on World Health Organisation (WHO) global health sector strategy for HIV/AIDS 2011-2015 and the launch of the third edition of the national guidelines for anti-retroviral therapy.
He said the latest ARV treatment has much fewer side effects, better toxicity profile, a lower pill burden and less medication interactions.
"I have felt it imperative to revise the national guidelines so that our patients could derive the greatest benefit from the latest advances in HIV/AIDS medicine also proposed by WHO," the minister said.
He noted that the success of the ARV programme has resulted in increased community acceptability and utilisation of other related services such as voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) and prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
"Let me at this juncture recognise and acknowledge the magnificent work that our community counsellors are doing," said Kamwi. He said community counsellors are strong pillars on which the country's VCT programme is anchored.
"Without their hard work and commitment, we would not have been able to have reached the remarkable milestones in rolling out the anti-retroviral therapy well," he said.
At the occasion, he said good treatment results could only be achieved if patients adhere to treatment as per the standard guidelines. He said treatment should not be seen in isolation of other health and community services.
He called on families, friends, employes and other partners to give support to HIV/AIDS and TB patients to comply with treatment in order to limit the emergence of drug resistance.
The WHO Country Representative, Dr Magda Robalo, at the same occasion, said HIV/AIDS has caused much devastation to the world like no other disease that "we can remember did".
But through commendable efforts from governments and partners, treatment with ARVs has been massively scaled up.
"Unfortunately, prevention efforts did not match the pace of the pandemic, but we are getting there - with renewed energy," Robalo said. She added that stigma and discrimination continue to be widespread, while care and support remains largely inadequate.