Chandigarh leader om HIV/AIDS prevention activities

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Chandigarh, June 22: Chandigarh is poised to become the national leader in HIV/AIDS prevention activities with the proposed induction of two more counselling and HIV testing facilities.

These additional facilities will be provided at Community Health Centre, Sector 22 and ESI hospital.

This decision was taken at the 7th Governing Body Meeting of State AIDS Control Society (SACS), held here yesterday under the chairmanship of Home-cum-Health Secretary Krishna Mohan.

The Union Territory is already having four facilities per district which is considered a big achievement in the field of HIV/AIDS control. The Governing Body also decided to make available a mobile van to provide counselling and testing facilities at people's door step.

The SACS also decided to install 20 more triple column condom vending machines at key locations of the city like railway station, ISBT, hotels, petrol pumps, public conveniences etc. SACS would also start providing grant-in-aid to district Blood Bank at the Blood Resource Centre.

Mr Krishna Mohan stressed the need for more intersectoral collaboration in order to mainstream the HIV/AIDS prevention activities. He also recommended holding of debates and competitions for slogan writing, poster making at school and colleges levels. He also asked for incorporating outstanding work of students in awareness activities of SACS.

The Project Director, SACS, Dr Sonia Trikha while presenting the annual report of State AIDS Control Society, informed that the UT is leading in the area of HIV/AIDS awareness. She disclosed that high risk population of slums, villages and some urban sectors were being covered by 14 Targeted Intervention projects involving non government organization (NGOs). Theme specific capacity building workshops have been conducted for all field workers and staff of NGOs.

Dr Trikha further informed that the UT with 78 per cent voluntary blood donation is among the top six in 35 states/union territories, where voluntary blood donation is more than 60 per cent. It was highlighted that sentinel surveillance, an annual activity, to know the disease trends in the community showed that while prevalence of HIV/AIDS had fallen in Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) and ante-natal clinic attendees in 2005, it had risen among Injecting Drug Users.

Dr Trikha disclosed that 904 AIDS patients have been enrolled for Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) at PGIMER provided by National AIDS Control Organization (NACO). Chandigarh is catering to all the northern states of the country and only six per cent of the people tested positive in the Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre of Chandigarh belonged to Chandigarh while 94 per cent people were from other states.

Community Care Centre, a 10 bedded hospice at Khuda Ali Sher is also providing treatment and nutritional support to AIDS patients.

As many sa 268 patients availed the facility this year. More than five hundred patients were given medicines for opportunistic infection last year.

UNI

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