People infected with HIV still not part of society

BELGRADE – Modern therapy for people infected with HIV is now available in Serbia, which has turned the infection from a deadly disease into a chronic illness, but addiction and stigma remain a major problem preventing people to participate in social life.

It is estimated that 3,500 people are HIV-positive in Serbia, but one-third of them are unaware that they are infected because there is no demonstration.

In many cases, infections are detected as soon as the first symptoms appear.

Last year, in our country, 178 new cases of infection were detected and 14 patients died.

The Executive Director of the Union of Organizations Living with HIV and AIDS, Vladimir Antić, said that support for newly infected people is very important and that the parents' council plays a very important role.

"Parent counseling means that people living with HIV provide support to newly infected people, and budget support for this type of counseling is undefined everywhere," Antic said at the conference "Sustainable Services for People Living with HIV." HIV ".

He hopes that parenting advice will find its place in the 2020 program budget of the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Affairs and adds that funding for this service is a place at the national level.

"Support for people living with HIV, human dignity and HIV prevention is necessary if we are to stop the spread of infection," he said.

Assistant Minister of Labor, Nina Mitic, pointed out that infected people are discriminated against because of fear and that fear is due to ignorance.

All together, she said, we must work to reduce stigma and prejudice.

Snezana Klašnja, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, underlined that the Ministry is currently funding 12 projects and that five of them deal with the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases.

"We will continue to support programs and projects," she said, adding that parental counseling was very important because someone who is already infected can best help the newly educated.

The most common mode of transmission of HIV infection remains the least protected sexual intercourse, while it is the second most common form of injecting drug use.

In two thirds of people, HIV is diagnosed at a late stage, which means that their immune system is severely impaired. Most importantly, the infection should be detected as soon as possible and those infected with HIV should immediately begin to diagnose the treatment.

(Tanjug)