What are the stats in Africa for AIDS/HIV?

Question

I have to do a report on Botswana on AIDS/HIV, and i cant find anything. can you help?

Answer 1

Visit the World Health Organization website. You'll get all the statistics on any disease anywhere in the world.

Thanks for asking for how you can do research, instead of trying to get other people to do your report for you. Folks never learn anything that way.

Good luck with your studies!

Answer 2

The stats are high, but higher in India at present. Please note that the stats are not a true reflection, cause many folks in South Africa and I include Botswana, Lesothu and Swaziland, refuse to have the HIV test, so the stats are thrown out completely, but we rate that the ratio is around 6/10. Many folks who believe they are positive commit suicide without the test, HIV is the virus in the blood and AIDES is the disease it causes. There are folks who die of Pulmonary Tuberculosis or Pneumonia, but they are full blown AIDES, but this is never shown on the death certificates, so we do not know the true statistical count

Answer 3

Using my Yahoo search engine, I typed in Aids Africa, and u p came a ton of material, including one that specifically says "aids s tatistics/Africa" That should keep you busy for a whole day LOL

Answer 4

AIDS commitee of Toronto Canada on Church st.

They send misionary's to Africa to educate peoople on the use of condoms etc.

Ask for Kenneth Hodges he is one of thier facilitators and a friend of mine . I don't have the phone # but he will be glad to help you out as to the stats. Trout is my dog's name so he shoud be able to figure out who I am


Godd luck phone # is in the 411 online but go though Yahoo Canada for a search engine

Likely on lone as well - but again I haven'tgone looking,so I don't knowif they do or the don't.

Answer 5

A LOT!!

Answer 6

a's public health system by offers of better pay and benefits, and some had moved abroad. To compensate, Botswana recruited workers from poorer parts of Africa, as well as from India and Cuba.47 As a result, most of the doctors were foreign and did not speak the national Setswana language.48

When each new site opened, many of the first patients to enrol were already very sick, and so required a lot more time and resources.

"If you spend all your time and capacity on the very sick people, you can never get to those who are not sick, and unfortunately, that sets up a loop of perpetually insatiable demand." - Dr Ernest Darkoh.49

HIV-related stigma and denial was also a major barrier to people accessing services.50

"People are still reluctant to come forward to be tested. They don't come forward because of the fear of discrimination and the stigma associated with HIV. And unless you're tested, you don't know whether or not you're positive and therefore might benefit from treatment." - Dr Linda M. Distlerath, Merck's Vice-President for Global Health Policy.51

"I'm very frustrated. We think because of the stigma attached to this sexually transmitted virus, and because some of our religious people have said this is a curse or those who have it are sinners, that people are afraid to get tested." - President Mogae.52

As 2003 drew to a close, MASA was still a long way short of the 19,000 target originally set for the end of 2002, and some observers argued the programme had been mismanaged, and was not a good example for other African countries to follow.53 An American newspaper reported that despite all the support it had received, Botswana's treatment programme was "barely making a dent".54
Botswana's treatment success

The number of people receiving antiretroviral treatment through the public sector continued to rise gradually during 2003, reaching around 8,000 at ten clinics by the end of the year.55 Then in 2004 MASA entered a new stage of rapid expansion.

By May 2004, more than 24,000 people had been enrolled on MASA, of whom 14,000 were receiving antiretroviral treatment.56

"The response has been tremendous. People are coming forward and the sites are overwhelmed." - Dr Ernest Darkoh.57

By the end of the year, UNAIDS/WHO estimates showed that between 36,000 and 39,000 people were receiving antiretroviral treatment, including those using the private sector, who made up around one quarter of the total. MASA was achieving good rates of treatment adherence in terms of self-reporting, pill counts and attending scheduled appointments, and this was confirmed by measuring viral load suppression.58

"What is even more heartening is that we are beginning to see a change in attitude. Batswana are finally understanding that regardless of their HIV status they have viable options available to them to continue seeking and living fulfilled lives." - Dr Ernest Darkoh.59

By June 2005, the total had risen to 43,000 people receiving treatment - more than half of the 75,000 in need, according to the World Health Organisation. The Princess Marina Hospital in the capital Gaborone was the largest single provider of antiretroviral therapy in Africa, and 31 other sites in Botswana were offering free treatment, including at least one in each of the 24 health districts. About three quarters of those receiving treatment were doing so through the public sector, but an increasing number of private companies were also offering treatment to their employees, including the Botswana Power Corporation and Barclays Bank.60

By September 2005, according to Health Minister Sheila Tlou, the total number on treatment had reached 54,378, and 4,582 children were receiving treatment through MASA.61 According to World Health Organisation figures, 85% of people in need of treatment were receiving it at the end of the year, including those using the private sector.62

A study published in November 2005 found that the first patients to receive treatment through MASA experienced "excellent" responses, comparable with those seen in the developed world. However drug toxicity was a significant problem, and led to changes in the drug regimen.

"This data confirms what we are starting to see throughout the developing world. Patients will do fine regardless of social and economic status, provided the necessary infrastructure and funding are in place." - Professor Richard Marlink, Harvard School of Public Health.63

"Mortality has gone down. There is a real decrease." - Dr Sheila Tlou, Minister of Health.

"We are so grateful. These days we are burying old women again [instead of young people]." - a village chief.64
How was such a rapid increase possible?

When considering the progress of MASA, there are a number of factors worth taking into account:

* Experience shows that the number of people on treatment at each site does not grow at a uniform rate. Expansion starts slowly then accelerates as the local health workers gain confidence, commitment and experience, and as organisational "teething problems" are overcome. Eventually the rate of growth will slow down again as everyone in need is enrolled.65

* Routine testing has increased demand for treatment, especially among people without symptoms.

* A social mobilisation campaign has raised awareness of the availability and effectiveness of antiretroviral treatment, and has helped to reduce stigma and discrimination. Once people see for themselves how therapy has benefited others, they become more eager to seek services.

* The programme has been well supported. As of mid-2005, Government expenditure on treatment scale-up was expected to be around $62.1 million in 2004-5. An addtional $3.3 million was expected from the Global Fund, $6.4 million from PEPFAR and $20 million from non-governmental organisations, charities and foundations.66

* Botswana has more money, better infrastructure and a better health system than most other sub-Saharan African countries.

* Ways were found to ease the shortage of trained staff, as explained below.

Easing the shortage of trained staff

In 2000, the Harvard AIDS Initiative and the Botswana Ministry of Health set up the KITSO Training Program, which provides training in HIV and AIDS care tailored specifically for Botswana's health professionals. Participants are allowed to remain in their posts while receiving the training, so as not to leave their clinics even more short-staffed. Major support for KITSO is provided by ACHAP.67 By September 2005, KITSO had trained 1,941 health care workers in HIV/AIDS clinical care fundamentals.68

Another important development has been the clinical preceptorship programme. This scheme brings HIV specialist doctors from the USA and Europe to work in Botswana for periods of at least three months, providing hands-on training to local medical staff.

The Government also pays private doctors to test for infection, carry out the laboratory work, and supply treatment to people unable to access it through the public sector, particularly those in rural areas. And NACA has tried to develop a system of lay counsellors to ease the workload of some nurses.

"Even when I did find a doctor willing to come to the country, [he or she] wasn't willing to live in remote rural areas... So the answer must be that we use already existing people who are living in these communities - in new and creative ways." - Dr Ernest Darkoh.69
The way forward

Botswana's national treatment programme is now seen as a successful model for other African countries to follow. Though progress was initially slower than expected, the programme made rapid progress in 2004 and 2005, and patient responses have been comparable to those seen in Europe and the USA.

MASA has demonstrated that antiretroviral treatment can be provided on a national scale through the public health system of a sub-Saharan African country - not just through localised projects run by foreign aid workers or researchers. In Botswana's case, almost all of the actual cost of treatment has been paid by the Government, while other partners have given support by providing laboratory equipment, staff training or patient monitoring services.

"The Government of Botswana has demonstrated a very high level of political commitment to addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic... Botswana's success provides a fine example of how antiretroviral therapy can be provided on a large scale in resource-constrained settings." - World Health Organisation.70

But the struggle to provide universal treatment in Botswana is far from over. In the first place, there are still many people dying because they are not receiving the medicines. In addition, all of those already enrolled must continue to receive drugs and monitoring services for the rest of their lives, and people who develop resistance to their current medications must have access to alternatives, which can be more expensive and complex than first-line therapy.

It is much easier to provide treatment in towns than in rural areas, and MASA will need to be further decentralised to ensure that all districts are covered. The shortage of skilled staff will continue to be a great challenge to MASA, and the programme will continue to be very expensive. The need for help from the rest of the world is as urgent as ever.

Even if universal access is eventually achieved, antiretroviral treatment alone cannot solve Botswana's devestating HIV and AIDS crisis. Botswana's long-term vision is to have no new HIV infections by 2016, when the nation will celebrate 50 years of independence. This will never be achieved without a massive and sustained HIV prevention campaign.