TASO Masindi registers 1.6% of new HIV cases

Masindi: The Aids Support Organization (TASO) Masindi cluster has so far registered 1.6% of new HIV cases since this year.

In an exclusive interview with this publication on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, Edmund Tayebwa, the TASO Manager Masindi, said that they tested 8,352 people from the months of January and June this year, and out of the above number, 140 tested positive for the virus, representing 1.6%.

He also disclosed that they have been able to test 2,387 children, representing 28%. Tayebwa said though the number of new cases is relatively the same as in the last quarter, they have tested many more people compared to the previous time.

In addition, Tayebwa told this news portal that out of the people they tested, 4% had a new infection that was less than a year old, while 96% had an old infection that was older than a year.

He also disclosed that those who tested positive for HIV were enrolled on ARVS drugs, and they are monitoring them to see what their treatment results will be after six months.

Tayebwa added that they have 4,068 clients, and out of those, 68% are female. He advised those potentially exposed to the risk of getting HIV to get tested.

He also stressed that they still have a challenge of stigma, which is holding back many people from testing for HIV; fatigue, where clients tend to get tired of swallowing drugs; and others being lied to by traditional doctors, thus abandoning drugs.

Tayebwa therefore advised HIV patients to adhere to drugs and desist from using local herbs, saying they have a negative impact on their health and affect the performance of ARVs.

Call for more funding

The management of TASO is calling for more funding in order to complete their treatment center.

The Shs1 billion project was launched in November last year, and construction has apparently kicked off at the foundation level.

Tayebwa said that through various avenues, they have already realized about 100 million shillings to support the initial phase.

He therefore called upon the general public to support the project with funds or construction materials. ‘’The construction of the treatment center will improve service delivery and provide privacy for their clients, mostly corporate clients who travel long distances like Kampala, Gulu, and others,’’ he said.

Tayebwa added that they have embarked on the project after being allocated land by the district leadership, and this facility will be the center for excellence in HIV care, serving people in the entire Bunyoro subregion.

Currently, TASO Masindi occupies part of the private wing of Masindi General Hospital, which should be operationalized to offer more specialized health services to the community.

In Bunyoro Subregion, TASO Masindi Centre is the largest HIV/AIDS facility, currently serving 4,068 clients.

About TASO Masindi

Founded in 1987, TASO Uganda is the oldest indigenous HIV/AIDS service organization in Uganda, with 11 branches across the country currently extending comprehensive HIV/AIDS services to over 120,000 clients, including children and adolescents.

In Bunyoro Subregion, TASO Masindi Centre is the largest HIV/AIDS facility, currently serving over 4,025 clients as of the end of June this year.

Over its 18 years of existence, TASO Masindi has directly identified and cared for over 12,887 HIV-positive clients and continues to impact millions of HIV-negative risky populations through community testing counseling and sensitization engagements.

Hotspot areas

According to the research conducted, Chongoyoma, Alimugonza villages in Pakanyi Sub County, and Kinyara in Kabango Town Council are the major spot areas with the highest cases of HIV/AIDS in Masindi district.

There are about 15,000 people in Masindi district living with HIV, and of those 1,253 are children, 4,000 are men, and women are the highest, with over 7,000 infected with the deadly virus.

Currently, the number of cases in the country stands at 1.5 million, of which 59% are women, and of those, 8% are new infections.

Ms. Hope Murungi, the Coordinator of Civil Society and Private Sector at the Uganda AIDS Commission, said recently that Masindi is one of the leading districts in the fight against HIV, and unfortunately, it’s still leading in HIV cases in the Bunyoro subregion, which is at 6.5%.

She noted that there is a need for the community to join the fight against the deadly virus, stressing that the struggle shouldn’t only be left to political, religious, or cultural leaders.

Murungi also asked partners to get tested for HIV, and if they turn positive, they enroll in drugs, swallow them in time, and if they turn negative, they continue protecting themselves and being faithful to their partners.

She also asked men to always escort their wives during antenatal services as one of the ways of getting to know their statuses and controlling the spread of the virus.

Ms. Nyamaizi Ritah, the coordinator of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Masindi, said stigma and discrimination have forced people to abandon drugs, thus jeopardizing the efforts in the fight against the virus.

She also said inadequate funding and drugs in the hospitals are among the challenges they are facing, so she asked the government to allocate adequate funding towards the fight against HIV and provide adequate drugs in the hospitals on time.

According to Nyamaizi, there is a need to form groups for people living with HIV from the village to the district level; this will enable them to know the number of patients they have and how to support them in benefiting from government programs, among others.

Dr. Ronald Musisi, the Head of Department for Medical Services at TASO Masindi Cluster, said a number of ways to bring back the clients on medication have been employed, like intensifying health talks with the people who are found positive and attaching them to peers and counselors for continuous counseling.

He also added that they continue doing health education and explain the possibility of their HIV status turning negative when they are positive.

According to the information obtained from TASO Masindi Cluster, 12,249 patients in the district are on medication for HIV.

Dr. Musisi also stressed stigma and discrimination as a major factor hindering their clients from picking up their drugs at the facility, disclosing that 88% of adolescent children are not taking their drugs constantly due to a lack of food since they are being taken care of by their grandmothers or grandfathers.

He also mentioned truck drivers, sex workers, homosexuals, and adolescents as members of the group of people at risk of contracting the deadly virus.

According to recent statistics from the Uganda AIDS Commission, about 52,000 new HIV infections and 17,000 AIDS-related deaths occur per year. These new infections are occurring among young girls and women between the ages of 15 and 24.

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