Fishing communities fear testing for HIV
Jul 01, 2009
MOST residents around the Kyoga and Kwania lakes in Amolatar district still fear to undergo voluntary HIV/AIDS testing and counselling.
By Alex Ocen
MOST residents around the Kyoga and Kwania lakes in Amolatar district still fear to undergo voluntary HIV/AIDS testing and counselling.
The LC5 chairman, Alfred Adoli Ogwok, said due to stigma, the fishermen prefer witchdoctors to medical care.
“Despite repeated sensitisation, they have not responded positively and this has affected the fight against AIDS,†Ogwok explained.
He was on Saturday addressing the residents during the handover of three laboratory buildings worth sh217m to Amolatar, Aputi and Etam health centres.
The laboratories were built with support from the Northern Uganda Malaria, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis (NUMAT) programme and the United States Agency for International Development.
The district health officer, Dr. Quinto Okello, said in spite of the Government’s effort to provide HIV-related services, many people could not access them due to the long distances from their homes to the service centres.
Okello urged the Government to upgrade more health centres so as to take services nearer to the people.
NUMAT chief of party James Otim said the project would design programmes to make services more accessible. Otim urged the people to make maximum use of the laboratories, saying increased demand for services would attract more funding from the Government and donors.
MOST residents around the Kyoga and Kwania lakes in Amolatar district still fear to undergo voluntary HIV/AIDS testing and counselling.
The LC5 chairman, Alfred Adoli Ogwok, said due to stigma, the fishermen prefer witchdoctors to medical care.
“Despite repeated sensitisation, they have not responded positively and this has affected the fight against AIDS,†Ogwok explained.
He was on Saturday addressing the residents during the handover of three laboratory buildings worth sh217m to Amolatar, Aputi and Etam health centres.
The laboratories were built with support from the Northern Uganda Malaria, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis (NUMAT) programme and the United States Agency for International Development.
The district health officer, Dr. Quinto Okello, said in spite of the Government’s effort to provide HIV-related services, many people could not access them due to the long distances from their homes to the service centres.
Okello urged the Government to upgrade more health centres so as to take services nearer to the people.
NUMAT chief of party James Otim said the project would design programmes to make services more accessible. Otim urged the people to make maximum use of the laboratories, saying increased demand for services would attract more funding from the Government and donors.