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Members of
the public administration of Oaxaca,
representatives of Public Health, distinguished
citizens, ladies and gentlemen,
On behalf of the members and friends of the Frente Común Contra el SIDA, I would like to express our
sincere appreciation for the invitation to contribute to
this open forum, “Health and Public Assistance.”
As you know, we are a Non-governmental
Organization and as such we represent no more than the
eyes and voice of our people.
The pandemic of HIV/AIDS has touched every
sector of our society, and as such, every sector has its
own responsibilities in the confrontation with this
disease.
Our system of public education must develop
truthful and non-moralistic programs of prevention that
can save lives. Our communications media must open a
clear and intelligent public debate in our community,
free of the stigmatization which can characterize HIV.
Our civil society must be vigilant of the interests of
the people and the responses of our institutions in this
epidemic. And the art community must contribute not
only with the donations of their works, but also
contribute to our community a vision of ethics in these
efforts.
It is obvious, in the theme that today
occupies us, the public health sector has a vital role
to play in the course of this disease.
The following comments which we offer are
based upon a survey we completed in this past year.
As member of the society of community
organizations, we have the interest to oversee that the
patients of our AIDS Clinic of COESIDA are receiving the
full attention and medicines they deserve. An alarming
fact came to our attention about the lack of medicines
available at this clinic, a situation which we brought
before the public. During the past month of March, with
the support of the Advisor to the Secretary of Health,
we were given the opportunity of interviewing all the
patients of this clinic and to note the number of
antiretroviral medicines which they were receiving. We
observed the following data: Of the 145 interviews
conducted, only 41 percent were receiving three of the
antiretroviral medicines which make up the so-called
“cocktail of three,” recommended by the Network of
Persons who live with HV/AIDS, Mexico City.
In the following month, April, the
administration of COESIDA announced the acquisition of
antiretroviral medicines for an additional 50 patients,
bringing to a total of nearly 80 percent of their
patient load. We consider that this represents an
advance toward the goal of covering 100 percent of the
patients at the clinic.
At this time, the Frente Común Contra el
SIDA would like to confirm these data and verify the
actual availability of these medicines, respecting at
all times the patients’ confidentiality.
We would also like to mention a dramatic occurrence
which took place last January in a community in the
Mixteca of Oaxaca. A patient long-known to the Frente
Común and receiving attention at COESIDA, related to us
a story which we would like to share with you. The
patient, who we shall call “Chole” and lives in a
distant community, required a form of emergency medical
attention which she solicited at her regional hospital.
There she informed the staff of her HIV status and
received a terrible rejection, even to the burning of
her bedsheets and the complete violation of her
confidentiality within her community.
This woman, with the moral support of the
Frente Común, presented a complaint before the Human
Rights Commission of the state, about her treatment and
clear violation of her rights. Thus began a series of
actions which rose to the highest levels of the Health
Secretary and finally resulted in a three-day seminal
directed to the health workers at that hospital, on the
correct treatment and attention of persons who are HIV
positive. We applaud this decision and the concrete
actions which resulted, which is clearly part of the
responsibility of the government of the state in the
area of Public Health.
However, we want to say, what each and every
one of us must ask, how many regional hospitals, how
many local health centers, how many rural clinics are
now displaying this same total lack of training and
brutal mentality against patients with HIV/AIDS which we
saw in the case of “Chole”? How many such human rights
violations are occurring and never brought to our
attention?
We must not wait for more rejections, more
violations. We must not wait for complaints before the
Human Rights Commission, before acting on an urgent
program to inform, train and sensitize every health
worker in the state of Oaxaca.
We know there are great limitations in the
government budgets in our health sector. There are many
needs, in the area of education, of environment, in the
fight against dengue and cholera, which deserve
immediate attention. We know there is a great shortage
of medicines in general in our society, there is a lack
of employment, of money, of time. However, it is the
responsibility of our officials to set the priorities
for these resources in the fight against AIDS in Oaxaca.
In consideration of all the previous, we
consider that the Forth Report of the Government to be a
discussion of good intentions, lacking in concrete
actions that further this cause in the near and far
future.
The Frente Común Contra el Sida, as a
non-governmental organization, call on the authorities
in Public Health to implement full access to information
about AIDS, to report completely on the availability of
AIDS medicines and their distribution.
We raise our voice and the voice of our
community to insist on attention to fully 100 PERCENT of
all the HIV/AIDS patients in the state.
That fully 100 PERCENT of required medicines
be acquired by our clinic.
And that complete training and current
instructions be required of 100 PERCENT of health
workers in the Public Health sector of the state of
Oaxaca.
We appreciate
the opportunity to express these important points with
you today, because we are…
“Unidos en la Lucha Contra
el Sida”
Good afternoon.
Ayax Cruz
Frente Común Contra el
SIDA
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