Big Up To Earlier HIV Treatment

Botswana has made significant strides in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and continues to dedicate resources to this cause as evidenced by the launch of yet another preventative strategy. The initiative launched by President Ian Khama on Friday will enable all HIV people to start treatment as soon as diagnosed.

What this means is that all Batswana diagnosed HIV positive will receive antiretrovirals earlier than  reaching the 350 CD4 count, which used to be the starting point for treatment. This approach will see approximately 100,000 more people enrolling in the Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) this month. In the past, there have been instances where people are enrolled in the therapy when they are very weak.

This had a number of implications for instance nutritional complications hence government dug deeper in public coffers to provide food baskets. Moreover, ill-health has contributed to lack of productivity as no human being can deliver optimally when unwell. The previous CD4 count cut-off opened room for stigma, as some people would get treatment when their immune system was at a low.

Editor's Comment
Closure as pain lingers

March 28 will go down as a day that Batswana will never forget because of the accident that occurred near Mmamatlakala in Limpopo, South Africa. The tragedy affected not only the grieving families but the nation at large. Batswana throughout the process stood behind the grieving families and the governments of Botswana and South Africa need much more than a pat on the back.Last Saturday was a day when family members said their last goodbyes to...

Have a Story? Send Us a tip
arrow up