IRAQ: Focus on shortage of medicine for HIV/AIDS patients

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

BAGHDAD, 7 Apr 2005 (IRIN) - Officials from the AIDS Research Centre (ARC) in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, have complained of a shortage of medicines for HIV/AIDS patients under treatment in the country.

Those living with the virus depend on free treatment, usually offered at the centre, but for more than five months the stock has been empty and has not been replenished.

"The drugs for these patients are essential to prolong their lives and without them the virus will increase and make the immunity of our patients much worse," Dr Amunur Taufik, deputy director of the ARC, told IRIN in Baghdad.

"My health situation has worsened because the centre has no more medicine to offer me. I understand that they cannot do everything, but they have to help us to a faster solution to our problem. If I had money I would ask for help, but sometimes I cannot even afford my daily bread," an HIV-positive person using the centre, told IRIN, with tears in her eyes.

CASELOAD

Today, Iraq has 72 people living with HIV/AIDS under treatment at the centre, according to officials. All patients have been receiving information, psychological treatment and medicine during their weekly meeting at the ARC. A total of 448 HIV/AIDS cases, including those who have died from the disease, have been detected since 1987 when the centre was first opened, officials said.

The main ways in which the virus is spread in Iraq is through sexual intercourse and blood transfusions - for which tighter controls are now in place.

The Iraqi government is, however, offering assistance to those living with the disease. The Ministry of Health (MoH) gives a monthly grant of US $35 to HIV-positive Iraqis, but this, according to medical staff, is not enough even to buy a single tablet for their treatment. The MoH also gives an extra $200 per person for general expenses approximately three times a year.

PROBLEMS IN AQUIRING THE RIGHT DRUGS

According to Taufik, the medicine needed is very costly and they are waiting for the MoH to replenish desperately needed stocks.

In an effort to find more funds, the ARC director met health professionals and international NGOs in Egypt early in April and called on pharmaceutical companies to help in supplying medicine. However, he complained that most of the companies were not interested in contracts with Iraq, as the quantity of drugs requested was too small compared to other orders.

"We don’t require big stocks of the drugs, as the disease can be controlled in our country with smaller quantities of medicine. But we are even having difficulties in getting this, due to a lack of interest from the companies. They are only interested in making money from bigger orders and not in helping to save lives," Taufik added.

In addition, the World Health Organization (WHO) in Iraq is working in partnership with the MoH, in trying to get donations of the right medicines and is offering training, laboratory kits and diagnosis equipment at the centre.

MISINFORMATION

The MoH has developed a new project that will increase the flow of information about the prevention of HIV/AIDS in the country. A special department at the ministry has started working on this and will use volunteers to give prevention lectures at universities and secondary schools all over the country.

Amar al-Saffar, deputy minister of health, told IRIN that misinformation inside the country had already caused panic among Iraqis. He complained that many newspapers in Iraq had written inaccurately about AIDS and had published exaggerated numbers of infections, claiming that the disease was out of control.

"The bad information and the inexperience of our journalists, who just want to make stories, is causing panic in the country. This can be very dangerous, especially because they are saying that there is an increase in the sexual transmission of the disease as this is also not acceptable in our culture," al-Saffar added.

According to the centre, before 2003 around seven HIV-positive cases were detected every year, practically all of them related to hemophiliacs (those who require blood transfusions to tackle an impaired ability to control bleeding).

However, by 2004 the number had doubled and changed its route of transmission, according to government statistics. This was considered a substantial increase in such a short period of time and medical experts said they were concerned as 90 percent of cases were contracted through sexual contact.

In addition, there is ignorance about what HIV/AIDS is and how it is spread. A recent survey by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said some 70 percent of those interviewed in a sample group of young people had never heard of the disease or modes of transmission. It added that 55 percent were not interested in getting information on the disease.

The survey also showed that 80 percent of the interviewees had a negative attitude towards HIV-positive people, showing discrimination towards the group.

INAPPROPRIATE TREATMENT

According to the deputy health minister, there have been some cases of people buying medicine on the black market for large sums of money out of desperation.

"This medicine can prevent you from getting AIDS, it’s a very good one and you cannot find this at pharmacies," Abu Qussay, told IRIN, while selling packets of unmarked pills on the black market. However, when Qussay showed the leaflet for the medicine it turned out to be for hypertension.

Staff at the ARC now fear even more lives could be lost if people resort to buying such medicines not suited to their condition and called for urgent action to be taken to bring in more drugs to enable those living with HIV/AIDS to live longer, more productive lives.

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