The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : ‘Statistics vital for crusade against HIV’

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 21, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

‘Statistics vital for crusade against HIV’

Special Correspondent

Photo: Mohd. Yousuf

AIDS watch: Health Minister S. Chandrasekhar releases toolkit on Thursday.

HYDERABAD: Health Minister S. Chandrasekhar on Thursday said Government was doing everything it could to motivate people to come forward and get themselves tested. Only when clear statistics were available could the crusade against the dreaded virus be more focussed, he said.

He was addressing a gathering of voluntary action representatives at a workshop ‘Reducing HIV stigma & Gender-based Violence”, organised by International Centre for Research on Women (ICRW) and Bhoruka Foundation. Releasing a toolkit for healthcare providers, he symbolically handed over the first one to Achampet MLA Vamsee Krishna. He said Government’s efforts were aimed at improving awareness among people on prevention and management with anti-retroviral therapy (ART) to improve quality of everyday life. Government was going forward with concerted plans that involved the coordinated effort of every department down to the mandal-level and not just the Department of Health and Andhra Pradesh State Aids Control Society (APSACS), he said. Nata Duvvury from ICRW, Washington narrated how the toolkits were finalised after field testing by frontline healthcare providers, including traditional birth attendants and registered medical practitioners in Ichapuram of Srikakulam district.

A consultant from South Africa, Ross Kid, in his presentation said prime on their agenda to spread awareness and remove all kinds of stigmas and breaking taboos from the minds of people. “We need to get parents talking to their children and voluntary activists talking to communities, on the need for safe sex”, he said. APSACS Project Director, G. Ashok Kumar outlined the society’s efforts both in combating AIDS and in prevention. Gender development specialist Nandini Prasad presented an overview of the project.

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