While the public awaits the official announcement of figures for the last year from
the AIDS Secretariat, calls are being made by the body for persons who have tested
positive for HIV to seek treatment.
Programme Manager Delcora Williams made the call during a recent media
appearance.
"That person is more dangerous than any other person because the reality is if you
are positive and do not access care the level of the virus in your blood increases
and that makes it easier for you to infect someone else. We would like everyone
out there who has ever tested positive to access care. They don't have to come to
the national program, they can go to their private doctors," Williams said.
Over the years, there has been a decrease in a number of individuals testing
positive, a trend Williams has welcomed.
For 2022, there has been a 30 percent reduction in new cases being reported at both
public and private health facilities in the Latin American and Caribbean region,
with the total cases that the country has seen since 1985 standing at 1390.
Males continue to lead in the majority of the cases in the country with 53 percent
(750) of the total figure; females figures stand at 640 (47 percent).
There are still no records of transmission from mother to baby. A feat Williams
and her team continue to celebrate.
She still however is admonishing the public not to become too complacent.
In an effort to tackle that complacency, the Secretariat has increased its
appointments and is looking at broadening the locations where testing can be done.
"What we have done is train healthcare providers and CSO's (Clinical Support
Officer) to be able to conduct an HIV test. We are hoping to roll out testing not
only at the AIDS Secretariat and the clinics but also in the CSO's offices. We are
trying to reduce the novelty of going into the Secretariat office or a lab to get a test.
"The other thing we have been doing is going to hotels, different work places to
offer testing. We are like a fixture on some of these hotels where they know we
will be in twice a year for testing. We also introduced another avenue where
persons can call us and inform us, they will like to be tested privately and we meet
them. The only thing that we ask is that persons write us a letter and this is free of
cost," Williams added.
Training sessions are scheduled to take place next month as well.