HIV post-exposure treatment helping Malawi –official
Malawi is giving post-exposure preventive drugs to HIV-positive pregnant women and any person when incidents of accidental unsafe sex with an HIV-positive has occurred, secretary for nutrition HIV /AIDS, in the office of the president and cabinet, Mary Shawa has said.
Shawa also said the 28-day long, aggressive drug programme is also given to nurses and doctors who are exposed to possible HIV infection through accidents such as hypodermic needle pricks.
She told closely held private broadcaster Capital Radio that the post-exposure treatment is helping Malawi to reduce infection.
“When a pregnant woman is HIV positive, we give them Post-Exposure Prophylaxis. It’s the same with a child who has been raped or a woman or a boy who has been raped. Those need Post-Exposure Prophylaxis such as the combine therapy which is given.
“The purpose is to prevent the infection going to the person who has been found in that situation by accident.
“Even when a doctor or a nurse is doing his work, or her work, when they prick themselves and note that the patient that they were treating was HIV positive, they are also given Post-Exposure Prophylaxis.”
The treatment helps to prevent more HIV infections, Shawa said.
“So it doesn’t create a problem but it prevents. Where it can create a problem is where somebody deliberately goes for a problem and continuously use Post-Exposure Prophylaxis then it becomes problem,” she said.
However, the secretary for nutrition HIV /AIDS strongly advises Malawians to maintain their commitment to safe sex.
Shawa said government had introduced ‘One Love Campaign’ to encourage the people to stick to one partner only.
“Another strategy is called as “moonlight testing” whereby individuals and couples can “sneak” into a testing facility in the evening and take an HIV test with utmost privacy,” Shawa said.
She said that the government also hoped to reduce HIV infection rate by offering door-to-door voluntary HIV testing, as well as mobile HIV testing facilities.
Explaining on the door-to-door campaign, she said it would create favourable environment for thorough counselling at family level, and the same time, promoting trust and confidence on the other hand.
Meanwhile, she disclosed that Malawi had been recognised for its tireless efforts that have been aimed to reduce malnutrition-related deaths.
She said malnutrition-related deaths in the country had been reduced from 20 to 2 percent in the past five years, achieved through the country’s sound nutrition policies.
Shawa said people living with the HIV virus, were provided with free food stuffs that include Chiponde and Sibusiso.
Following this success story, health officials in the country have been invited to Geneva where they will share with other countries how it managed to reduce malnutrition within five years, according to Shawa.–
eee but to work as a Doctor or nurse in malawi is a very big risk in HIV contraction-imagine kutenga edzi usakupanga chigololo? boma liyenera kuwakwezera malipilo anthu awa!
Iwe kkgf, umenewo ndiye umbuli wa nyoooo! unamva ndani kuti aids umayitenga ndi chigololo chokha?? pitani ku school m’malo motaya nthawi kumayika ma comment opusa!!!
Koma abale pa Nyasa times Mbuzi zachuluka bwanji? iwe Ineyo you mean you cant understand what kkgf says? he just said “imagine kutenga aids usakupanga chigololo?” does this imply that aids umaitenga ndi chigololo chokha? kupanda nzeru bwanji?
I totally agree with kkgf! Actually, am told that the situation is better now with availability of free ARVs. It was sad in early 2000! Some doctors say the challenge is even worse when they were students especially from 3rd year to year 5 and when they are doing internship, especially in surgery and obstetrics operations. Imagine in the calsualty department with many fatal accidents happeneing in Malawi. No wonder most of these guys remain in UK.
Currently, the entry grade for lawyers (5 years) in Malawi Civil Service is P7 while doctors (7 years) is P8. The Malawi Government is not considerate and poses a poor driving force for the youth in which career to embark on. No wonder, many Malawian youth opt for business or lawyers. Lets help our doctors.
aaah some one 7yrs @college = p8, another one 5yrs @ college = p7.Though i dont know the toughness of these two courses but i feel like its a curse to the doctors.really malawi gvt does not reward hard working.Its not easy to be writing exams for seven solid yrs at college only to be receiving a salary less than some one who spent only 5yrs
aaah some one 7yrs @college = p8dont know the toughness of t, another one 5yrs @ college = p7.Though i hese two courses but i feel like its a curse to the doctors.really malawi gvt does not reward hard working.Its not easy to be writing exams for seven solid yrs at college only to be receiving a salary less than some one who spent only 5yrs
“When a pregnant woman is HIV positive we give them post-exposure prophylaxis”..WRONG. That treatment should only be given to someone within 24 hours of exposure. So if someone os pregnant and they got the virus last week, it’s a waste of time to give them the prophylaxis. This treatment is meant for people who go to Bwandilo and unwittingly sleep with an HIV+ person. They must come to the hospital within 24 hours of exposure. Before the prophylaxis is given, the victim is first tested to ensure that they do not alrady have the virus. The goal is to make sure you get the treatment before the viruses have time to multiply. After 24 hours, it’s too late! The viruses have multiplied and the treatments can’t work. Just wait for ARVs (which are not a cure)
I think it is the reporter who did not understand the difference between Neverapine given to women to avoid transmission of HIV to child and PEP given due to occupational exposure or in circumstances where one suspects to have contracted HIV e.g rape, unprotected sex etc. Madam Shawa is too smart to make that mistake.
4 more effectiveness its 24 hrs but even after 72hrs(three days) it works and Preferred PEP regimen:
Zidovudine 300mg orally twice daily+ lamivudine 150mg + tenofovir 300mg once daily for four weeks.Which are the same ARV’s people take to avoid the early development of AIDS
This is a very good development. Other countries started using this long time ago and now it is being abused in the sense that people go out ‘boil’ knowing there is this drug.
Komanso, how can one know kuti wagona ndi mamuna or mkazi wa HIV+ for him/her to immediately get the PEP regimen? Poti these days sionse odwala amadziwika and akakhala akaziwa angoneneperabe, nkusalala komwe and boil kukoma kwake nkumodzimodzi. Potinso ngakhale azikazi athuwa olo azimuna athuwa akadatibweretserabe matendawa and akakhala wako akafuna mwendo sungakane and you cant force him/her to use a condom, akuchokera ndithu. Please explain mwachindunji mayi Shawa muja mukambiramu.
kkgf ndi nankhoma ndinu mbuli kwabasi. Kodi ukachindana ndi munthu wa HIV/edzi umatenga edzi kapena HIV? Mukaphunzirenso kuti musamasonyeze umbuli wotere pa internet.
MRS SHAWA SAYS IN MALAWI WE HAVE REDUCED NUTRITION, FROM 20 TO 2 PER CENT IN 5 YEARS. HOW FAST IN A COUNTRY WHERE THERE WAS HUNGER NOT LONG TIME AGO. ARE YOU SURE MRS. SHAWA? OR YOU ARE LOOKING AT THOSE WHO ARE WORTH AND LIVING IN GOOD AREAS. GO TO KAWALE, VILLAGES YOU WILL SEE CHILDREN WHO ARE VERY SKIN AND SICK AND ONE CAN SEE THAT THEY HAVE NOT EATEN OR THEY DONT GET NORISHED FOOD. WORSE POOR CLOTHING. WHY DO YOU WANT TO GIVE A GOOD PICTURE OF MALAWI WHEN WE ARE STILL THE POOREST COUNTRY. 3/4 OF MALAWI POPULATION LIVES IN VILLAGES. HAVE YOU MRS SHAWA COUNTED THEM IN THAT 2 PER CENT? WHEN I WAS GROWING IN THE 60TH I NEVER SAW THIN CHILD IN THE VILLAGES AND NOT SO POOR DRESSED. TO DAY I HAVE SEEN WORSE AND I WONDER WHY? WE WANTED INDEPEDENCE WE GOT IT IS THIS WHAT INDEPEDENT MEANS? I TOOK A FRIEND TO MALAWI, I WAS PROUD TO SHOW HER MY BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY, SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE HAS NEVER SEEN A COUNTRY WERE CHILDREN ARE SO POOR AS IN MALAWI. SHE HAS TRAVELLED IN MANY AFRICAN COUNTRIES. I WAS SAD BECAUSE I NOTICED TOO. HOW CAN A CHILD OF 5 YEARS GO WITH A HALF T SHIRT WHICH WAS TORN AND ALMOST BROWN INSTEAD OF ITS COLOUR WHITE. PLEASE MALAWI IS SO FAR THAN COUNTRIES WHICH HAD WAR. GO TO UGANDA, GO TO LIBERIA TO DAY, GO TO TANZANIA POEPLE ARE POOR IN HOUSING BUT THEY LOOK MORE HEALTHY AND WELL DRESSED. WHY MALAWIANS GO TO TANZANIA TO BUY CLOTHING TO SELL? WERE ARE OUR OWN MATERIALS, WE USED TO BUY AND GIVE A TAILOR TO SEW? THERE ARE ONLY INFECTED KAUNJIKA AT MARKETS. VERY UN HEALTHY CLOTHES TO WEAR AND NO ONE HAS TALKED ABOUT IT. NO THERE IS STILL NUTRITION IN MALAWI AND IT IS NOT 2 PER CENT. GO TO GENEVA AND TELL THE LIES.
Choyamba ndiyankhe mau a Louise Chodziwa, It seems a Chodziwa you haven’t been to Malawi for a long time or else your village is full of lazy people. These days Malawi is developed both in the village and town. Secondly thanks to the Ministry of Healthy for coming up with this drug. Our boys and girls are being raped day in, day out by disgruntled men and women, Now we will only be worried with one thing and thats the trauma they go through other than totally loosing them to this pandemic. God help us.