Secunderabad (AsiaNews) – The Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI), one of the world’s largest non-governmental organisations in the health sector, has decided in its general meeting to pay more attention to HIV/AIDS patients. The general meeting, which was held on 22 and 23 October 2010 at the CHAI Training Centre, Deva Yamjal, Secunderabad (Andhra Pradesh), attracted more than 550 health care workers and activists, including bishops, priests, nuns, and others.
Three topics dominated the proceedings, namely health intervention opportunities at the international, national and regional levels, CHAI yesterday, today and tomorrow and current CHAI projects, but one issue stood out: AIDS.
The “number of HIV/AIDS is growing in the country, “Fr Mukundev Boloiarsingh, a delegate from Orissa, told AsiaNews. “We need to reach them and their family members. [. . .] In this regard, CHAI, as a church-based organisation, can contribute to the prevention of HIV/AIDS,” as well as educate the public on “how to care and love AIDS/HIV patients and not discriminate them.”
In fact, in too many cases, people with HIV/AIDS have been sent away by their families and communities. Some have been denied necessary medical treatment. In some cases, they were even deprived of the last rites before death.
India has a population of about a billion people, around half of whom are adults in the sexually active age group.
Its first AIDS case was detected in 1986 and since then, HIV infections have been reported in all states and union territories. However, the spread of HIV in the country has been uneven.
Whilst, India has a low overall rate of infection, certain places have been more affected than others.
HIV is more severe in the southern half of the country and the far northeast. The highest HIV prevalence rates are found in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka in the south as well as Manipur and Nagaland in the northeast.
The vast majority of patients are heterosexual (80 per cent), mostly among high-risk groups like female, male sex workers, and drug users.
