HIV and AIDs cases on the rise in Ada – Health Director
The number of HIV and AIDS cases being recorded in the Ada District is on the rise, with the district recording a prevalence rate of 1.9 per cent higher than the national prevalence rate of 1.7 per cent.
The District has recorded 80 HIV cases in the first quarter of the year. 13 out of the recorded HIV cases are pregnant women and the district says it is worrying as these women skip hospital during their pregnancy and resort to home delivery.
Dr Kofi Boakye, Director of Health in Ada East said the District recorded 1,674 HIV cases in 2019 adding that 598 cases were recorded among the males and 1,076 cases were recorded among females who were between the ages of 0 to 80.
He said the virus was most prevalent among the ages of 0 to 15 as they recorded 1,547 saying that the males recorded 133 and 1014 among the female population in the Ada East District.
In a report presented on his behalf at the first ordinary session of the Ada East District Assembly to consider the Assembly’s Authority Report for ratification and implementation, He noted that among the 1,674 people living with the disease, it was only a few patients who go to health facilities for Antiretroviral Therapy (ART).
He expressed concern about the majority of those who go for the treatment and have stopped midway. According to him, the 80 cases that had been recorded were those that had come to the hospital and cautioned that they could be more people living with HIV and AIDS in the society.
Ms Sarah Dugbakie Pobee, the District Chief Executive for Ada East in the sessional report also expressed worry about the spate of HIV and AIDS infections in the District.
She said the rise in the cases had the potential to hinder human resources development if not curtailed.
Ms Pobee cautioned the residents to be conscious of the situation and responsibly conduct themselves.
Meanwhile, she noted that as part of the initiative to deepen local participation in governance, the Assembly embarked on grassroots stakeholder engagement on its medium-term policy planning document.
The initiative included a door-to-door engagement. Six communities have already been engaged in the medium-term policy for the development of Ada East. 27 electoral areas have also been clustered into 18 communities for easy access and engagement.
Working together with the Planning Officer and other team members, the Assembly plans to resume consultation with residents after which opinion leaders and chiefs have their turn to make an input.
So far, the communities that had been engaged have raised issues of roads as their main challenge stating that it impacted negatively on their farming and fishing activities.
Ms Pobee encouraged residents and stakeholders to participate in subsequent engagements to enable the Assembly to collate their needs, which would help in the planning of projects and policies to be initiated in the various communities.
Source: GNA