Category: HIV/AIDS

Zimbabwe Successfully Integrates TB/HIV Programs- Minister

Healthtimes

By Michael Gwarisa HEALTH and child care minister, Dr David Parirenyatwa has applauded Zimbabwe for successfully integrating Tuberculosis (TB) and HIV programs in a bid to curb high mortality amongst HIV patients owing to TB. TB and HIV have of  late been described as Siamese twins owing to the indelible trail of destruction they have left behind. In an interview with HealthTimes on the sidelines of the ongoing Afro National TB and HIV Programme Managers conference in Harare, minister Parirenyatwa said government had successfully integrated the two deadly diseases in…

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Ignoring Key Populations Threaten 90 90 90 Targets

Healthtimes

By Michael Gwarisa  LEAVING key Populations (KPs) behind in HIV/AIDS interventions and programs poses a a threat to the ambitious target of reducing HIV prevalence, deaths and new infections  by the year 2020. In Zimbabwe, KPs mean gay men and other men who have sex with men, sex workers and their clients, transgender people and people who inject drugs as the four main key population groups, but it acknowledges that prisoners and people with Disability also are particularly vulnerable to HIV and frequently lack adequate access to services (ZNASP3 )…

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U.S. Government Committed To Ending TB In Zimbabwe

Healthtimes

By HealthTimes Reporter The United States government health agency, Centre For Disease Control (CDC) says is committed to assist Zimbabwe in the fight against Tuberculosis (TB) Infections  and called for  increased collaboration among private and public health organisations to sustain efforts that accelerate progress in preventing the spread of tuberculosis (TB) among health care workers. Addressing delegates in Harare during the National Infection Prevention and Control Conference on Wednesday, CDC  Zimbabwe Branch Chief for HIV Services Shirish Balachandra said, “It is paramount that we implement measures to keep health care workers…

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Govt rejects HIV mandatory testing

Healthtimes

By Daniel Phiri GOVERNMENT says it will not follow the example of Zambia by instituting mandatory HIV/Aids testing adding that it’s a violation of human rights. Zambia last month had announced that it was mandatory for people to be tested for HIV/Aids as part of its response strategy to curb the complicated disease. However, after a wave of massive opposition from human rights organisations and civic groups, the decision was reversed. Addressing Online and digital journalists at a workshop organised by the National Aids Council (NAC) recently, head of Aids…

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Can HIV Hide In The Blood?

Healthtimes

HealthTimes Contributor So most of you might be wondering probably ten year after you had a sexual encounter with someone you didn’t trust, whether you contracted the virus or not. Many a times, you develop something, a wart or boil in some funny area of your body and your memory quickly lingers back to that very moment you might have gone beyond limits. Well before we go any further, the best way to know whether you are HIV positive or not is by getting an HIV test and thank God…

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How I Conquered HIV Stimga : The story of Vangrista Nyambuya

Healthtimes

“I have disclosed my status to my community and to my family and we are living a normal life, people have accepted us for who we are and they even remind me when I forget to take my medication…” By Daniel Phiri THERE are close to 1.3 million people living with HIV/Aids in Zimbabwe and most of them face challenges owing to stigma attached to the disease. However this stigma is based on misconceptions, myths and unverified beliefs and results in society looking down upon HIV/Aids infected people. Stigma has…

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NAC Meets Online journalists

Healthtimes

…as digital news takes centre stage By Daniel Phiri NATIONAL Aids Council (NAC) says it has decided to hold an HIV and Aids media workshop for digital and online journalists because it has realised that their articles have a wider reach. New media has literally taken over the way information is communicated with the world slowly turning to the digital space for almost everything including news. Zimbabwe has many online newspapers operating in and outside the country, owing to huge operational costs involved in running print media. Addressing the media…

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Aids Levy Collections Shrink

Healthtimes

By Michael Gwarisa HIGH informalisation of the economy and massive company closures alongside job cuts have had an adverse impact on Aids Levy collections, a National Aids Council (NAC) official has said. According to NAC’s Accounting officer Godfrey Mzari, collections to the AIDS Levy have been on a downward trend since the year 2014 and 2017 is likely to be even worse. “Currently, the AIDS levy is being collected from the formal sector, by formal sector we mean registered employees. Its collected by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) and disbursed…

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Engaging in Sex Early Exposing Girls To Cervical Cancer

Healthtimes

“It is also advisable for young girls not to engage in sex at an early ages as this has been seen to be another factor behind the rise in Cervical Cancer in Zimbabwe…” By Michael Gwarisa YOUNG girls who engage in sexual intercourse at an early age (9-18) are at a greater risk of developing cervical cancer in the long run, an Island Hospise official has said. Speaking in a program HIV Interventions on Star FM yesterday, Island Hospise Training Manager Franciscah Tsikai urged young girls to abstain from sex…

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PEPFAR Says Zimbabwe Winning HIV War

Healthtimes

By Michael Gwarisa THE U.S President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) says Zimbabwe is amongst the top four Southern African countries slowly winning the battle against the HIV epidemic. ALSO READ: Four African Countries Approaching Control of Their HIV Epidemics as U.S. Continues Its Commitment to PEPFAR Data from PEPFAR show that the HIV epidemic is coming under control across all age groups in Swaziland, the country with the highest HIV prevalence in the world and “…Additional PEPFAR-supported studies released in December 2016 for Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe demonstrate significant…

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