adminHealth Reporter
MANICALAND healthcare providers are experiencing declining percentages of positive Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) tests among patients as latest statistics released by National Aids Council puts its positivity rate at five percent.
The positivity rate is cause of concern as it is lower than expected and could mean that the generality of the province’s population is unaware of its HIV status.
“Matabeleland South and Bulawayo have the highest HIV positivity rates at 13 percent with Manicaland recording the lowest at five percent,” reads the NAC First Quarter 2015 report.
The National HIV Positivity rate was static at eight percent.
Positivity rate refers to the number of people who are HIV positive who presented themselves for testing.
Efforts to get a comment from the Provincial Medical Director (PMD) Dr Patron Mafaune were unsuccessful as her mobile number was unreachable, but a senior health official in the ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the trend was worrying.
“One aspect is that people are shunning HIV testing or it could mean that the same people coming already know their status. What needs to be done is to mobilise so that more people in Manicaland, especially men, go for testing,” said the official.
“Men generally do not have health-seeking behaviour, and that is why there is low uptake of male circumcision because men do not want to go to hospital. They do not want to queue up for health services unless the condition is dire and the other issue is that due to their behaviour, most men suspect that they could be HIV positive and they do everything to shun the confirmation that comes with testing”.
The report says 26 100 people were circumcised at 102 static sites across the country. VMMC is now being conducted by nurses with effect from January 2015.
“A total of 26 100 procedures were performed during the quarter. Cumulatively there are 426 335 people who are circumcised, which translate to 32,8 percent towards the desired target of 1 300 000,” it says.
The report says HIV and AIDS prevention remains the country’s priority and combination prevention strategies hinging on social and behaviour change communication (SBCC), HIV testing and counselling (HTC), condom promotion and distribution, VMMC, treatment for prevention and prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT), have been adopted.
About 26 116 440 male condoms and 1 231 701 female condoms were distributed in the first quarter of 2015.
It says PMTCT services are being provided at 1 560 public health facilities in the country. This year 102 432 women were booked for ante natal care, an eight percent decline from the 2014 last quarter of 111 886.
“The percentage of male partners tested for HIV in ANC remains low with a four percent decrease. There is need to expand on strategies such as community dialogues to ensure male involvement in ANC to be able to achieve the set annual target. There was a 9 percent increase in the percentage of women who were tested for HIV in ANC and received their results in the quarter under review,” reads the report.
The number of new STI cases recorded stood at 48 337, an eight percent decrease from the last quarter of 2014.
The HIV positivity rate for STI clients decreased from the 16 to 15 percent.
Online Reporter