Executive Director in the Ministry of Health and Social Services, Ben Nangombe, said more needs to be done in supporting children and adolescent youth living with HIV and in achieving the fast-track targets amongst that population.
Nangombe said this on Tuesday, while officially opening a three-day virtual training on Paediatric HIV management, targeting healthcare workers at both public and private healthcare facilities.
The training offers refresher courses amidst constant change treatment regimens and gives an opportunity to local healthcare workers to share lessons on how other countries are managing children and adolescents living with HIV; how they are managing HIV and COVID 19 co- infections in children, as well as the use of Pediatric DTG 10mg, which was introduced in Namibia earlier this year.
Nangombe said programmatic data shows that Namibia stands at 91.3 per cent for viral suppression among the adult population. However, more work needs to be done among children and adolescents living with HIV as latest data shows that in terms of the fast-track targets for paediatrics, Namibia stands at 63 per cent for viral suppression.
“For years, we have encountered challenges in achieving the fast-track targets amongst children and adolescents living with HIV. This is due to several factors such as limited range of paediatric formulations and poor adherence,” Nangombe said, adding that to address some of these gaps, the ministry has started transitioning eligible children on ARV Treatment to the new Paediatric Dolutegravir based formulation, which comes as a scored 10mg tablet.
This transition commenced in June 2021 and to date 73 percent of children are transitioned. The plan is to transition 100 percent of all eligible children by 31 December 2021, he said.
The ministry has introduced the Namibia Adolescent Treatment Supporters (NATS), an adolescent peer-led intervention to support treatment, care and adherence to medication amongst children, adolescents and young people living with HIV.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
