Re: Estimates of HIV Prevelance

[Guest guest]

Dear Forum Members,

Scaling out ART is a big challenge and indeed requires more resources

to be pumped in. Denying treatment or being complacent to treatment is of course

unethical. Also at the same time, we have to evaluate the effectiveness of other

interventions especially the preventive efforts which also take up a lot of our

resources.

For that, the statistics are important. Pumping in resources without monitoring

the outcome is again unethical.

Any debate which enhances our productivity and improves our way of

health care action & delivery has to be promoted. Lets hope that the

present debate is for that, rather than as some critiques say an

attempt to be complacent (or to cover up earlier complacency) from the part of

NACO. Let the policy makers and researchers take it seriously and hone our

research methodologies.

So in short what we need is a comprehensive approach where preventive

measures, treatment/care & support, de-stigmatising efforts, etc. should be

taken up and given their appropriate importance.

The levels of activities in each area may vary from community to community

depending on their priorities. In any case the present levels in any area are

inadequate and a more massive roll-out has to come not only from Governments &

NGOs but from civil society at large.

Regards,

Dr.Nabeel.M.K.

e-mail: <drnabeelmk@...>