[ad_1]
Emanuel Fernandes was born a few weeks after his mother discovered that she was HIV positive.
"I was so shocked that I cried a lot – I did not expect it," recalls Leila Rodrigues of the routine prenatal screening test that had detected the virus.
Mrs. Rodrigues lives in the city of Praia, Cape Verde, and remembers the hospital staff who went to action. More importantly, she has been on antiretroviral (ARV) therapy to prevent transmission of HIV to her baby.
After a caesarean section and 18 months of anti-retroviral treatment and monitoring for children, Emanuel gave a negative result. "When they announced the news, I was so happy – it was the happiest day of my life," she exclaims.
Cape Verde has prioritized the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV because, as the Minister of Health, Arlindo Nascimento do Rosário insisted, "every child has the right to be born. in good health and lead a healthy life. They are born to shine. "
The country has decentralized HIV services and offers HIV testing to all pregnant women. If a woman is HIV positive, she is immediately given antiretrovirals, which, combined with a set of services during labor, delivery and badfeeding, reduce the risk of transmission of the virus to their children to less than 5%. The Cabo Verde health system provides these services free of charge as part of the government's universal health coverage policy.
Community work and individual visits are at the heart of the HIV / AIDS Coordinating Committee's "social workers" program (CCS-Sida) in preventing HIV infection. and support for people living with HIV or AIDS.
"Outreach is essential to help families and provide the information needed for moms to have a good quality of life and avoid stigma and social marginalization," says Augusta Fernandes, the social worker whose 50 " clients "were the mother of Emanuel Fernandes. .
"In 2014, 2015 and 2016, we had no infected babies," says Celina Ferreira, president of SAC-AIDS in Cabo Verde. There was a case in 2017, but she said that it was an anomaly "because the treatment was not followed because of family problems related to the drug use ".
With the support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners, Cabo Verde is leading the way in West and Central Africa in the elimination of HIV in children born of HIV-positive mothers.
Many countries lag behind in prevention of mother-to-child transmission
Many other countries in the region have not yet achieved the same success as Cabo Verde.
Less than half of pregnant women living with HIV in the western and central regions (47%) had access to antiretroviral drugs to prevent transmission of the virus to their child, compared to nearly 90% in Eastern and Southern Africa.
Although antiretroviral treatment coverage for children in West and Central Africa has increased from 18% in 2014 to 26% in 2017, coverage in the region is still the lowest in the world.
To help countries catch up on global progress, UNAIDS, UNICEF and WHO are using this week's High Level Meeting on the Elimination of Mother-to-Child Transmission. 39 HIV-infected children and the universal health coverage of pediatric HIV screening and treatment in West and Central Africa. In Dakar, Senegal urged countries to step up their fight against HIV in children.
"WHO is providing critical start-up funding and specialized support to help countries transform their response to HIV into sustainable, effective and responsive programs," says Dr. Hugues Lago, HIV / TB / Hepatitis Program Coordinator. WHO Regional Office for Africa. "We are helping more than 20 countries in West and Central Africa to further decentralize HIV-related services and reach global targets 90-90-90."
Inadequate laboratory systems remain a major obstacle. Only 21% of HIV-exposed infants in the region are screened for the virus in the first two months of life. Early infant diagnosis is crucial to ensure treatment as quickly as possible and save lives.
WHO is helping countries to integrate and decentralize their HIV programs into their broader health services and to build the capacity of national teams to strengthen early diagnosis in infants. HIV testing and treatment in antenatal clinics, immunization and malnutrition clinics, as well as mosquito bed nets for malaria control can help increase the number of infants diagnosed early.
Emanuel Fernandes demonstrates the success of programs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. He is now a healthy boy of 4 years old about to start elementary school and his mother has become an activist who helps other HIV-positive women as a member of the National Network of Living People. with HIV from Cabo Verde.
"I want my child to be a great man, humble with a big heart to help others," wishes his mother.
Source link
