Paediatric AIDS
The young at risk Around 99,000 children under the age of 15 were living with HIV and AIDS in 2006. Most of them are younger than five. By 2010, there will be an expected 121,000 HIV-positive children in Mozambique. While most infections are a result of mother-to-child transmission, Maputo Central Hospital also reports that some children are getting infected through blood transfusions, contaminated injections and sexual abuse. More than half of children living with HIV and AIDS die in their first year of life if they don’t receive treatment, and AIDS-related diseases are fast emerging as a major cause of mortality among children. In 2006, 17 per cent of child deaths were as a result of HIV-related illnesses. Three quarters of children living with HIV and AIDS need ARVs but only three per cent of the eligible children were receiving treatment in 2006. Out of those taking ARVs, 55 per cent alone are children living in the capital Maputo, an indication of the highly inequitable availability and access to treatment.
Expanding services for HIV-positive children The Ministry of Health, with support from UNICEF and other partners, works on expanding treatment, care and support for HIV-positive children across the country. Emphasis is placed on capacity building of health personnel and communities, stronger delivery of services in the districts, child-focussed national policy development and community mobilisation. The Ministry of Health is taking a public health approach to paediatric treatment, promoted through linkages to other child survival interventions such as vitamin A supplementation, immunisation, safe infant and young child feeding practises and insecticide-treated mosquito nets. New and existing ARV treatment sites are being scaled up and reinforced through a package of integrated services for children including screening, voluntary testing and counselling, treatment for opportunistic diseases, nutritional support and home-based care. On a national and provincial level, UNICEF provides the Ministry of Health with technical support to revise paediatric treatment protocols and update the skills of health workers. At the community level, various communications strategies are used to raise awareness on paediatric AIDS and create demand for services. Households caring for HIV infected children also benefit from home-based care and referral to primary healthcare services.
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