Rising HIV cases in Atiwa area.

Enyinesi (E/R), Jan. 25, GNA- The Medical Officer in-charge of the Enyinesi Government Hospital, near Anyinam in the Atiwa District, Dr Francis Kofi Annan, has expressed his concern about the rise in HIV cases in the area.

He said in 2006, the hospital recorded 52 new HIV cases while the figure increased to 72 last year.

Dr Annan said the issue required that the hospital and the community mobilized resources to sponsor health personnel and volunteers to move into the community, step up public education and undertake various activities to help contain the spread of the disease.

Dr Annan was interacting with media personnel at Enyinesi on Wednesday after a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), Children Health Work for Ghana Association had presented medical equipment worth over GH=A220,000 to the hospital.

He said the new HIV cases were detected through

voluntary blood donors, those who went for voluntary testing

and counselling and those who underwent diagnostic tests. Dr Annan said another disease, which was on the increase

in the area was hypertension, with 119 new cases being

diagnosed for the first half year of 2006 and 2,000 new cases

for the whole of 2007. He said Out Patience Department (OPD) attendance of the

hospital also increased from 8,000 in 2006 to 31, 314 in 2007

with malaria being the leading cases. Dr Annan said some of the leading cases for admission at

the hospital include malaria, pregnancy related complications,

accidents and hernia, adding that, in 2007 the hospital treated

159 hernia cases