PMTCT programme very effective in Guyana

TIMES INT'L

Dear Editor,

According to the World Health Organisation, an estimated 370,000 children under the age of 15 have been newly-infected with HIV in 2009 through mother-to-child transmission. HIV/AIDS transmission from mother-to-child pre- and post-partum is, however, at a relatively stable rate in Guyana.

In 2001, the National Aids Programme Secretariat and the Maternal Child Health Department of the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with UNICEF and PAHO, launched the Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme in Guyana with only eight clinics at three hospital sites in Regions Four and Six. Within a short space of time, Guyana’s PMTCT programme had in excess of 100 sites in eight regions; and, to date, the programme has 156 sites nationwide.

Today, efforts made to decrease and ultimately prevent the spread of HIV are still of national priority. The PMTCT programme is aimed at preventing the transmission of HIV from mother to child during pregnancy. It is one of the most successful HIV programmes in Guyana.

Through this programme, pregnant women receive counselling and are given antiretroviral drugs (ARD) to reduce the risk of them passing on the virus to their unborn children. The drug Zidovudine, a universally acknowledged HIV treatment that blocks the reverse transcriptase enzyme and changes HIV’s genetic material into DNA, is provided free of charge without discrimination to all HIV patents. This drug is also critical in stopping the transfer of the virus during breastfeeding, a process for which the ministry has stringent guidelines that must be followed.

Postpartum detection and treatment of new-born babies, which was not available in Guyana in 2001, is today standard practise at all HIV clinics. Newborn babies can now be tested via DNA testing at birth; and if HIV positive, are immediately administered liquid formulations of the ARV treatment.

The Health Ministry’s dream of giving every child the opportunity of living an HIV-free life through PMTCT interventions fully incorporates safe motherhood and childcare initiatives. While the success of the PMTCT is not a topic usually discussed, the programme continues with 97 per cent of women having access to antenatal services.

Yours faithfully,

Rachael Bakker

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