Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Agenzia Fides) - Moma on the Mozambique coast, 250 from Nampula, the country’s third largest city is one of the poor parts of one of the world’s poorest countries. Here Cuamm-Medici with Africa have reorganised a whole hospital and launched a programme of anti-retroviral therapy in rural areas.
To avoid discrimination of HIV/AIDS patients the drugs will not be distributed in a separate area but in the hospital. Other wards will treat normal diseases which kill like AIDS due to scarcity of medicines, doctors and insufficiently trained local personnel.
The hospital is a miracle in Moma, a community of 40,000 people with no access to clean water, only four hours of electricity from a generator. Most Mozambicans lives in rural areas, 38% in cities.
Every year about 1,600 are born and every day between 150 and 200 new born infants are weighed by one nurse so there is a long wait. The CUAMM midwife encourages the new mothers to have an HIV test and if positive prescribes the anti-retroviral therapy to prevent mother/child infection.
In 2005, according to UNAID only 9% of HIV+ persons received therapy in the government programme. Today where are 25,000 patients in therapy at the cost of 160 to 250 dollars per year per patient. Patients must persevere otherwise the virus acquires resistance/ So far only 5% has interrupted the treatment. (AP) (26/7/2006 Agenzia Fides; Righe:26; Parole:307)
