Ogun gives treatment to HIV-positive persons

THE Ogun State government has granted HIV- positive patients free access to treatment in all health facilities in the state.

The Director, Ogun State Agency for the Control of AIDS (OGSACA) in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Toyin Adeyemi, spoke in Abeokuta during an HIV Counselling and Testing Outreach (HCT) in conjunction with the World Bank -Supported Community HCT Outreach (WBSCHCTO) to community members at Ifo and Odeda Local Councils of the state.

According to Adeyemi, 6,577 members of the two local councils registered for the counselling exercise, disclosing that 2,447 were counselled and tested while 2,424 proved negative.

He disclosed that the free counselling and testing exercise were aimed at capturing the total number of HIV- infected persons in the state, adding that Governor Ibikunle Amosun was interested in the treatment of the infected members of the public.

His words: “The governor has made it mandatory that those who tested positive should not pay throughout the duration of their treatment, therefore, the infected people would be referred to the nearest health facility for free treatment.”

Adeyemi urged members of the public, particularly the youths to be mindful of the relationships they keep, saying if they were not 100 per cent sure of their partners’ HIV status, it would be safer for them to make use of condoms and other precautionary methods during sex.

In her remarks, the state HIV/AIDS Counselling and Testing Officer, Mrs. Lola Oluga, said the free counselling and testing activities carried out in Ifo and Odeda local councils respectively would be extended to other local councils of the state.

She disclosed that the exercise was aimed at sensitising rural communities on their HIV status, urging the public to go for regular check-up for early detection and management.

Oluga said those who were positive would have access to free anti-retroviral drugs, noting that government would leave no stones unturned at ensuring that HIV/AIDS was reduced to the barest minimum in the state.