Patients with HIV wait for ARV treatment at a Community Consultation and Assistance Centre in HCM City (Source: VNA)International aid agencies will stop offering free ARV medicine in the countryfor patients with HIV next year.
Insured anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment for HIV patients will begin in Junenext year once international aid stops, according to the Vietnam Administrationof HIV/AIDS Control.
Seventy-two percent of patients with HIV have health insurance, Hung said,adding that the city People’s Committee had approved funds for the remaining 27percent of patients with HIV who cannot afford cards.
“Who will treat them? How will we carry out?” Hung said. “This is the issue towhich we should pay more attention.”
Many representatives of district-level health centres have complained that theyhave not been able to set up a general clinic because of a shortage of doctors.
Dr Pham Thi Kim Hoa, head of Can Gio district Health Centre, said there werenot enough available staff to set up the clinics.
Around 110 patients with HIV are being treated at the district’s CommunityCounselling and Assistance Centre, Hoa said, adding that the centre has senteight of the 110 patients with HIV to the district’s health stations.
The remaining patients with HIV have been sent to the district hospital fortreatment, but the hospital has not provided treatment, even though the city’sCentre for HIV/AIDS Prevention has provided training to the hospital’s doctors.
Dr Phan Thanh Phuoc, head of the District 2 Health Centre, suggested thatinstead of general health clinics, the department should allow district-levelhospitals to set up a satellite department for ART treatment underhealth insurance.
The Health Department plans to merge all district-level hospitals and healthcentres by 2020 in order to solve the shortage of doctors and ensure treatmentfor patients with HIV with health insurance.
Thu Duc and Hoc Mon district hospitals and health centres will be the first tomerge this year.
Dr Tieu Thi Thu Van, head of the city’s Centre for HIV/AIDS Prevention, saidthat interruption in anti-retroviral therapy (ART) for patients withHIV/AIDS raised the risk of spreading the virus in the community.
This could lead to a failure to achieve the UN’s 90-90-90 goals by 2020. The goalsare to have at least 90 percent of all people with HIV know their statusand 90 percent receive sustained antiretroviral therapy (ART). The goalscall for 90 percent of all people receiving ARV therapy to be eventuallydiagnosed with viral suppression.-VNA
VNA
