Islamabad: Pakistan remains dangerously behind global HIV control targets with only 25 percent of people living with HIV aware of their status, just 16 percent receiving treatment and barely six percent achieving viral suppression, officials told a high level national taskforce on Friday.
During the meeting, the National Institute of Health complained that it was not receiving HIV data from Punjab or even the Common Management Unit for AIDS TB and Malaria.
The alarming disclosures emerged during the second meeting of the national taskforce constituted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to investigate reported HIV mishandling, rising infections and reuse of contaminated syringes in the country.
The taskforce also recommended declaring HIV a notifiable disease across Pakistan to strengthen surveillance and reporting mechanisms.
The meeting was chaired by Minister of State for Health Dr Malik Mukhtar Ahmad Bharath and attended by former SAPM Health Dr Zafar Mirza, DG Health Dr Abdul Wali Khan, officials from the Ministry of Health, NIH Islamabad, UNAIDS, Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan, provincial health departments and other institutions.
Officials told the taskforce that NIH, despite being the country’s leading public health and disease surveillance institution, was not receiving HIV related data from the Punjab health department, seriously affecting its ability to monitor disease trends, investigate outbreaks and coordinate national response efforts.
When the chair directed NIH officials to obtain the data directly from the Common Management Unit for AIDS, TB and Malaria, members of the taskforce were astonished to learn that even the CMU was not sharing HIV data with the National Institute of Health.
The taskforce was formed after the Prime Minister took notice of increasing HIV cases and concerns regarding unsafe medical practices, including reuse of contaminated syringes.
According to the official notification, the body was tasked to investigate HIV mishandling, identify responsibility and recommend measures for improving infectious disease control in the country.
Retired Major General Azhar Mahmood Kayani is serving as co chair of the taskforce while provincial health secretaries, DRAP CEO Dr Obaidullah, Dean Institute of Public Health Lahore Dr Saira Afzal and infectious disease expert Dr Sobia Qazi are among its members.
During the meeting, the Health Services Academy presented findings of the 6th Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance survey among key populations vulnerable to HIV infection. Representatives of one NGO working with people who inject drugs contested parts of the findings, prompting the taskforce to order a review of the survey results.
Officials briefing the meeting said Pakistan was far behind the global UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets aimed at ending the HIV epidemic. According to figures shared with the taskforce, only around one quarter of people living with HIV know their status while treatment coverage and viral suppression remain critically low.
The meeting was informed that stigma, fear of discrimination, limited access to clinics, low awareness among youth and key populations and dependence on clinic based testing were among the major barriers to HIV prevention and treatment in Pakistan.
Officials also highlighted the growing link between sexually transmitted infections and HIV transmission, noting that infections such as syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and herpes significantly increase the risk of HIV spread.
Dr Zafar Mirza proposed promulgation of a national public health law to make disease data sharing between provinces and the federal government mandatory, arguing that weak coordination and lack of timely data were undermining Pakistan’s ability to respond to infectious disease threats.
The taskforce also agreed to establish a real time HIV dashboard jointly managed by NIH and CMU for monitoring HIV cases, analysing trends and improving coordination between provinces and the federation.
Participants stressed strict enforcement against reuse of syringes, fake or wrongly labelled auto disable syringes and unsafe injection practices. The forum also called for regular inspections of pharmacies and healthcare facilities, strengthening of infection prevention and control systems and tougher regulatory action by DRAP against reusable syringes and unsafe IV sets.
Pakistan has witnessed a steady rise in HIV infections in recent years, with more than 14,000 new HIV cases being reported annually, according to official data.
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