adminPamela Shumba Chronicle Reporter
Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) (Doctors Without Borders) has welcomed new World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for HIV treatment and called for the improvements to be rapidly implemented to enable people in developing countries to benefit. MSF, an international medical and humanitarian organisation also stressed that increased international support would be needed.
The WHO recommendations include early antiretroviral therapy (ART) for people living with HIV, improved protocols to prevent HIV from being transmitted from mother to child and regular and more effective monitoring of people’s viral load to ensure treatment is working.
In a statement on Tuesday, MSF international president Dr Unni Karunakara said early HIV treatment makes a major difference in people living with HIV.
“It keeps people healthier and also helps prevent the virus from spreading within communities, but we need the political and financial support to see these recommendations rolled out rapidly. Use of viral load monitoring to ensure antiretroviral medicines are keeping the virus suppressed is another critical advance in the recommendations. Viral load testing works best when linked to robust adherence support, and shows multiple benefits for patients,” said Dr Karunakara.
“With the new WHO guidelines, the number of people now eligible for treatment will rise substantially. Countries should implement these new WHO guidelines and accelerate treatment without delay. It is critical to mobilise international support to enable them to do so, including funding for HIV treatment programmes from donor governments and the Global Fund.”
Mr Fasil Tezera the MSF head of mission in Zimbabwe said: “Viral load testing is an effective monitoring tool, especially in deciding when to switch patients on first-line treatment to second-line drugs. That is why here in Zimbabwe, MSF is supporting the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare in setting up a viral load machine at the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory. With these new guidelines our collective goal should now be to reach more people, and retain them on treatment.”
MSF has been working in Zimbabwe since 2000, and runs projects in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare (MOHCW), that include treatment and care of people with HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and drug-resistant TB (DR-TB), Sexual and Gender based Violence (SGBV) interventions and emergency preparedness.
Projects are located in Beitbridge, Buhera, Chikomba, Epworth, Gokwe North, Gutu, Mbare and Tsholotsho.
The organisation provides HIV treatment to 54 000 people across Zimbabwe and 285 000 people in 21 countries.
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