Hanoi (VNA) - Eleven more people were exposed to HIV afterresponding to a traffic accident in Kom Tum province, with 35 people altogetherexposed to the virus altogether.

The information was announced on July 3 by Nguyen Van Don, head ofthe HIV/AIDs and Addiction Treatment Department under the Kon Tum HIV/AIDSPrevention Centre.

The 35 people included 24 medical staff, one from Kon Tum province’sPolice and 10 local residents.

Kon Tum HIV/AIDS Prevention Centre Director Nguyen Thi Dieu Thuysaid the 35 people were thought to have come into contact with the blood of a51-year-old HIV-infected female victim in a severe accident on June 30. She wasone of four fatalities in a head-on collision between two coaches. Neither thelocal residents taking her to the hospital, along with the 12 other injuredvictims, nor the medical staff trying to save her were aware of her condition.

Don said that the 35 were given free antiretroviral (ARV) medicine24 hours post-exposure, earlier than the recommended time frame of 72 hours.

Blood tests on the 35 people were negative, but confirmation onwhether they were infected with HIV must await final results from the Tay NguyenInstitute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, he said.

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Don said the chances anyone contracted HIV were low. TheHIV-infected victim had been receiving ARV treatment on a regular basis, Donsaid, so the concentration of the virus in her bodily fluids was very low. 

One of the local residents who took the HIV patient to thehospital on Saturday morning wrote a Facebook post, complaining that he wasasked to buy the ARV medicine at 5 million VND (220 USD).

The Facebook account user, Le Tung, said that he used his family’struck to help take eight victims of the accident to the hospital, one of whomwas dead with an open wound. While lifting her to the truck, her blood wassmeared onto a scratch on his body.

After learning that she was HIV positive, he went to a hospitalasking for the ARV medicine. “But a doctor there said that the medicine was notfor ordinary folks but public servants only. I who saved people will have topay 5 million VND a (ARV) drink. May I ask who still dares to save people or dowe just let the authorities do the saving work?” Tung wrote.

Nguyen Dinh Anh, Head of the Communications Department of theMinistry of Health, told Tuoi tre (Youth) newspaper that he was enraged. “Weare working to identify which doctor did this and asking the Kon Tum healthdepartment to handle it strictly,” Anh said.

HIV/AIDS Prevention Department head Hoang Dinh Canh said thataccording to regulations, only public servants are eligible for free ARVmedicine post-exposure. “However, the doctor should have asked his superiors insuch circumstances,” he said.

The Facebook user eventually received free ARV medicine and wasnominated for a reward by the provincial HIV/AIDS Prevention Centre for hisheroic act in rescuing the accident victims.-VNA