Tuesday 1st December, 2009 - December 1st is observed each year as World AIDS Day. For over 20 years, countries around the world have struggled to cope with the impact of HIV on the health and wellbeing of their citizens. Although effective medications have been developed to enable people with HIV to enjoy longer lives, there is still, unfortunately, not a cure for this disease.
HIV has not gone away and there are many things still needed to be done to combat this pandemic. Each year a specific theme for World AIDS Day is developed to encourage and motivate actions to cope with HIV. This year, the theme is “UNIVERSAL ACCESS and HUMAN RIGHTS”.
The theme focuses on the critical need to protect the human rights of persons who are living with HIV and to ensure them access to treatment and support. The theme acts as a call for countries to remove laws that discriminate against persons with HIV. It also provides an opportunity for all of us - individuals, communities and Governments - to take action and ensure that human rights are protected and that global and local targets for HIV prevention, treatment, and care are met.
Universal Access has been defined as the commitment made by global leaders to scale up access to HIV treatment, care and support. To achieve this commitment, the Ministry of Health and Social Development has drafted its 2009-2013 National Strategic Framework for HIV to include a multi-sectoral approach.
This approach will enhance coordination and collaboration within the public and private sectors to develop effective strategies to cope with HIV in the Virgin Islands. I hasten to remind you that HIV is not just a health problem nor is it a problem for the Government alone. It is a community problem that impacts all of us and ultimately the social and economic development of the Territory.
HIV is a difficult disease to manage. It requires specialized medications, treatment, and care services under the supervision of trained and experienced health care providers. The cost of HIV treatment and care often places severe financial burdens on individuals, families, and governments.
Our Government has joined with other global leaders and pledged to work towards universal access to prevention, treatment and care for people living with HIV.
As Minister of Health, I support universal access as one of the fundamental human rights that are supported under our Constitution. The protection of human rights is fundamental and essential to combating the HIV epidemic. Violations of human rights can fuel the spread of HIV. These violations can put marginalized groups at even higher risk of HIV infection. To protect human rights of people living with HIV, our Government through the Ministry of Health and Social Development has initiated anti-discrimination programmes to reduce stigma and increase the privacy and confidentiality necessary in the treatment and care for people living with HIV.
Our national health programme recognizes and aims to honour the rights of patients. This recognition will enable people living with HIV to be advocates for themselves and to become more involved in the planning and implementation of appropriate and sensitive treatment and care services.
To achieve universal access, our territorial health programme has committed itself to increasing the necessary mechanisms to deliver comprehensive HIV treatment and care for persons living with HIV. The Ministry of Health has further supported efforts to achieve universal access through the development of a unique public and private partnership between our national health programme and the HIV-AIDS Foundation.
The Government provides an annual funding grant to help the Foundation in its efforts to offer services to people living with HIV. Through this partnership, we have already achieved a great measure of universal access for every person living with HIV in the Territory.
We are currently engaged in research to determine which groups within our Territory are most vulnerable to HIV. This research will provide data to effectively plan and develop appropriate sexual health promotion activities that will reduce and, hopefully, halt the spread of HIV.
The World Health Organization estimates that 33 million people are living with HIV around the world. This estimate includes approximately 15 million women and more than 2 million children under the age of 15. These statistics show that HIV continues to be a major global health threat.
In the Virgin Islands, as you know, the first HIV case was reported in June, 1985. Since then ninety-nine (99) cases have been reported. To provide as much privacy as possible for people living with HIV, our reporting systems do not include names. To date we have lost 33 persons to the disease.
Of the current cases, thirty-two (32) persons access treatment abroad, while another twenty-eight (28) persons receive treatment and care locally: Several persons in the Virgins Islands have been living with HIV for more than ten (10) years, and our records show that at least one person has been living with HIV for twenty (20) years.
The current medications enable people living with HIV to live long and to live well. HIV is part of a group of sexually transmitted infections that requires the development of strategies to be included in the general health care of every sexually active person.
To increase sexual health check-ups and HIV testing in primary health care, the Ministry of Health has initiated training programmes for health care providers to offer Provider Initiated Testing and Counselling Services. The Ministry of Health, our national health programme and partnerships in the public and private sectors continue to work together to cope with HIV in the Territory. However, it is important that each and every one of us take up the challenge and develop sexually healthy lifestyles to reduce and halt the spread of HIV in the Virgin Islands. On this World AIDS Day 2009 I thank you for listening.
British Virgin Islands News