More Babies Tested, Treated, and Born HIV-Free in Namibia

May 11, 2017To end the country ' s HIV epidemic, new infections among children must be eliminated. This district is making it happen.Children are the most vulnerable members of our society.Be it from hunger or disease, the littlest and most innocent human beings should not suffer —because it is not their fault. It is never their fault. Their life and wellbeing depends on others.It is our responsibility and moral duty to do everything in our power to protect them from harm.The number of children born HIV-positive has dropped by over 90%.HIV can pass from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. But when effective medication is taken, the risk of transmission is significantly reduced. Children are born and remain HIV-negative, even when an HIV-positive mother is breastfeeding her HIV-negative baby.As a matter of fact, since the PMTCT (prevention of mother-to-child transmission) program was started, we have seen HIV transmission from mothers to their children decrease from 30% to less than 5%.This is a huge success.All of us here have one goal in common: we want to end the HIV epidemic. And to achieve that, new infections among children must be eliminated.The World Health Organization promotes a comprehensive approach to preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV. One important part of this strategy is to provide appropriate treatment, care, and support to mothers living with HIV, their children, and other family members.Since 2004, thanks to severa...
Source: IntraHealth International - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Source Type: news