As the AIDS epidermic remains unmanageable in Africa and developing countries an imminent danger of deterioration faces infected persons due to dearth of workers at AID's ce
ntres.
Worsening their plight, the group (PLWHAN) of people living with AIDS in Nigeria recently alleged absence and neglect of duty by AIDS/Health worker at the Lagos general hospitals.
ntres.Worsening their plight, the group (PLWHAN) of people living with AIDS in Nigeria recently alleged absence and neglect of duty by AIDS/Health worker at the Lagos general hospitals.
They decried a situation where members risk losing their jobs by staying a whole day in the hospital before they get treatment. Consequently, this would cause more harm to the individual, the state, the health system and the nation. They said though HIV drugs were free at the centres, screening for tuberculosis and x-rays were not available in some centres.
Under the aegis of Network of PLWHAN (NEPLWHAN), Lagos chapter, the AIDS patients in November 2008 asked the state government to improve the human resource constraint of the health sector, build capacity of the workers to have a pool of doctors, nurses and other health workers, as well as include peer counsellors in all comprehensive treatment sites.
At a press conference, Co-ordinator, NEPLWHAN, Mr. Ibrahim Umoru, said the present practice in some secondary health centres where HIV persons pay more for admission in public hospitals was the peak of stigmatisation. Umoru said: "Years back, one living with HIV would not find employment, but thank God for fruitful activism, advocacy and change has made it possible for someone living with HIV to be gainfully employed. "The trend now is that same persons living with HIV who have overcome the odds to live and earn a living are now faced with the ugly truth of losing their employment as they stay the whole day in the hospital for treatment, all thanks to the gross insufficiency of health workers in our facilities and the continuous weakening of the health system. This would cause more harm to the individual, the state, the health system and the nation at large.
"We are also worried about the stress our present doctors and other health workers are going through in respect of the workload. We have no other state to call our own. Our demands are in our resolve to remain good citizens and in the spirit of participatory democracy. Lagos State has been the centre of excellence and we pray to be part of this excellence and remain there. We call upon the government to look into these issues and work judiciously on it."
Umoru said there should be increased capacity building on HlV with multi-disciplinary approach. "Every general practitioner (GP) should be able to manage HIV, not just haematologists and virologists, he added.
Related News- AIDS: When will there be light?
Under the aegis of Network of PLWHAN (NEPLWHAN), Lagos chapter, the AIDS patients in November 2008 asked the state government to improve the human resource constraint of the health sector, build capacity of the workers to have a pool of doctors, nurses and other health workers, as well as include peer counsellors in all comprehensive treatment sites.
At a press conference, Co-ordinator, NEPLWHAN, Mr. Ibrahim Umoru, said the present practice in some secondary health centres where HIV persons pay more for admission in public hospitals was the peak of stigmatisation. Umoru said: "Years back, one living with HIV would not find employment, but thank God for fruitful activism, advocacy and change has made it possible for someone living with HIV to be gainfully employed. "The trend now is that same persons living with HIV who have overcome the odds to live and earn a living are now faced with the ugly truth of losing their employment as they stay the whole day in the hospital for treatment, all thanks to the gross insufficiency of health workers in our facilities and the continuous weakening of the health system. This would cause more harm to the individual, the state, the health system and the nation at large.
"We are also worried about the stress our present doctors and other health workers are going through in respect of the workload. We have no other state to call our own. Our demands are in our resolve to remain good citizens and in the spirit of participatory democracy. Lagos State has been the centre of excellence and we pray to be part of this excellence and remain there. We call upon the government to look into these issues and work judiciously on it."
Umoru said there should be increased capacity building on HlV with multi-disciplinary approach. "Every general practitioner (GP) should be able to manage HIV, not just haematologists and virologists, he added.
Related News- AIDS: When will there be light?
