Eastern Region gradually overcoming self stigmatization of HIV/AIDS

Koforidua, Sept. 19, GNA - Eastern Region is gradually coming out of self stigmatization as more and more People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWH) are coming out openly to join programmes to fight the spread of the pandemic in the Region. Currently, under a programme sponsored by Ghana AIDS Commission, some PLWHs have voluntarily been coming on Eastern FM Radio Station based in Koforidua to share their experiences with listeners. Some have also joined groups on community in-school-and-out-of-school education campaign on efforts to help reduce the spread of the disease. Ms Golda Asante, Eastern Regional Focal Person on HIV/AIDS, disclosed this in an interview with Ghana News Agency in Koforidua on Friday.

She said most PLWHs had also been trained as peer counselors for their HIV/AIDS support groups while others had been attached to Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) Centres to assist health personnel and also provide adherence counseling service. Ms Asante said currently the Region had 15 ART Centres in 15 out of the 21 Districts in the Region and said it was the hope of the Regional AIDS Committee to have ART Centres in all Districts in the Region. She said the Region in addition had 64 centres for the Prevention of Mother to Child HIV/AIDS transmission programme to ensure that as many children as possible were protected from the mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS.

Ms Asante said currently 25 out of the 30 HIV/AIDS support groups in the Region were benefiting from 60,000 Ghana Cedis support from Ghana AIDS Commission to cover their ART and socialization meetings. She said many of the support groups were also engaged in income generating activities like hiring of chairs, canopies, generators and selling of charcoal among other economic activities to enable them earn incomes to live better. The Region, which a few years back recorded a high HIV/AIDS prevalence rate of 7.9 per cent, now has a prevalence rate of 4.2 per cent. That figure is still considered high and more efforts need to be put in to help reduce the rate.