BHUBANESWAR: The state government on Wednesday launched a programme to test and treat prisoners with HIV, tuberculosis (TB). It will create awareness among them about the disease. The project will cover all the
central jails, selected sub-jails/district jails and other closed settings like
rehabilitation centres in the state.
Health department sources said people living in prisons and other closed settings like Swadhar, Ujjawala and state-run homes are at an increased risk of
HIV infection because they lack access to preventive and care services, making these settings a high-risk environment for HIV transmission.
The
National AIDS control organization (NACO), under its national AIDS control programme, categorized prisoners as one of the ‘special groups’. Section 31 of the HIV/AIDS (prevention and control) Act, 2017, stated that every person in the care and custody of the state shall have right to get HIV prevention, testing, treatment and counselling services.
Besides this, NACO is also expanding the services to women living in other closed settings such as Swadhar, Ujjawala and state-run homes.
Saathii, a non-profit organization, will implement this project with an objective to improve access and quality of HIV prevention, care and treatment services for people living in prisons and other closed settings.
About the activities of the programme, health department sources said HIV testing and counselling services will be provided through mobile Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres (ICTC) and health camps in the prisons and other closed settings. This project will facilitate provision of HIV treatment, including antiretroviral therapy (ART), care and support to people living with HIV by establishing link with ART centres.
It will also work for creating facilities for prevention, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis (TB). “This programme will create awareness among the prisoners and people living with other closed settings,” said Pramod Kumar Meherda, state health secretary.