ANTI- RETROVIRAL DRUGS MADE FREE IN GHANA. YET TO BE IMPLEMENTED AT THE HOSPITALS

Text and photo by: Francesco Rocco

During the recent World Aids Day observed in Central Region, it was made known that the antiretroviral drugs would be free of charge to Persons living with Aids, however information reaching CENTRAL PRESS indicates that the free drug policy has not been implemented.

When asked why some of the officials at the Family Planning Unit of the Central Regional Hospital disclosed that they are yet to receive a formal directive from the Ministry of Health to give the drug free of charge. Though they noted that all Persons living with Aids are made to register with the National Health Insurance Scheme free of charge, the programme has been for more than two years. Each month Persons living with Aids are made to pay five Ghana cedis for the antiretroviral drug.

Like other countries worldwide, HIV/AIDS is present in Ghana. As of 2004, an estimated 404,000 people infected with the virus. HIV prevalence is highest in the Eastern Region of Ghana and lowest in the northern regions of the country. In response to the epidemic, the government has established the Ghana AIDS Commission which coordinates efforts amongst NGO's, international organizations and other parties to support the education about and treatment of aids throughout Ghana. In particular, the United States, European nations and the United Nations have supplied aid to help alleviate HIV/AIDS issues in Ghana.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ghana seems to be progressing slowly. The Government of Ghana estimated the number of adults and children living with HIV as of 2004 at 404,000. The Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimated the HIV prevalence in adults to be 3.1% at the end of 2003, with an estimated 350,000 people living with HIV/AIDS. Ghana’s 2003 Demographic and Health Survey reported prevalence at 2.2% among the 9,000 people who agreed to be tested.

Ghana’s system of HIV surveillance for women attending antenatal clinics has functioned well since its establishment in 1994. Sentinel surveys of 21 antenatal clinic sites in 2002 reported a range from 3.2% to 9.1% in prevalence among pregnant women. In 2002, the median HIV prevalence at four of these sites in Accra was 4.1%; elsewhere in Ghana, prevalence in antenatal clinics ranged from 3.2% to 3.4%.

HIV prevalence is highest in the Eastern Region of Ghana and lowest in the northern regions of the country. Prevalence is generally higher in urban areas, in mining and border towns, and along main transportation routes. HIV-1 accounts for 92% of HIV cases in Ghana; another 7.4% of reported HIV cases are dual infections with HIV-1 and HIV-2. Only 0.5% of HIV cases were exclusively HIV-2. Heterosexual intercorse is the mode of transmission for about 80% of HIV cases, with mother-to-child transmission accounting for another 15%. According to the 2003 Demographic and Health Survey, HIV prevalence is very low among most younger age groups, as relatively few are infected during their youth (with the exceptions of infants infected through their mothers). The infection peaks late, compared to other countries, at 35–39 years for women and 40–45 years for men. The infection levels are highest in middle income and middle educational groups, with the poor and unemployed less affected.

Though evidence is still being gathered for making program decisions, some populations thought to be at risk include sex workers, transport workers, prisoners, sexual partners of people living with HIV/AIDS, and men who have sex with men and their female sexual partners. HIV prevalence among uniformed services is not fully established.

Mrs. Daphinè Nyagorme

Mrs. Daphinè Nyagorme, RCC double as the regional focus person for HIV, says that the real solution to this problem is that ghanaian people have to change behaviour, life style and began to take care of their lifes.

Approximately 9,600 children under age 15 are living with HIV/AIDS, and at the end of 2003, nearly 170,000 children under age 17 had lost one or both parents to AIDS. At that time only a few thousand of these children had received assistance such as food aid, health care, protection services, or educational or psychosocial support.

There is widespread knowledge of HIV and modes of transmission, with awareness of AIDS estimated at greater than 95%, although fear and stigmatization of HIV-positive people remain high. Ghanaians are at risk of further HIV spread for a variety of reasons, including engaging in transactional sex, marriage and gender relations that disadvantage women and make them vulnerable to HIV, inaccurate perceptions of personal risk, and stigma and discrimination toward people living with HIV/AIDS

Discrimination infact is one of the main problems. If a man is affected by HIV, nobody want to make him work. If a child is affected, nobody want to let him go to school to follow lessons. This understanding lake has to be overcome. Without sensibilisation about this disease, the problem can never be solved.