How MSF staff are combating HIV stigma and treating the virus worldwide
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Sixty percent of people living with HIV around the world are undiagnosed. Thanks to tests and treatments, HIV is no longer a death sentence. But barriers to care still mean that thousands of people with HIV die preventable deaths each year.
At Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), we believe every person should be able to access HIV treatment–no matter who they are or where they come from. However, access to treatments like long-acting injectables of pre-exposure prophylaxis, also known as PrEP, is still out of reach for too many people who are at high risk of contracting HIV.
That’s why MSF released a report this summer urging drug manufacturers to make PrEP available at an affordable price and help millions of people avoid new HIV infections.
Breaking down barriers to affordable preventive drugs goes hand-in-hand with breaking down stigmas around HIV so people can get the care they need–and MSF is actively pursuing both strategies.
In Mozambique, where thousands of people test positive for HIV each year, MSF provides screenings and treatment to prevent HIV from advancing. Additionally, MSF offers crucial psychosocial support for people living with the virus and follows up with patients who have serious illnesses.
“Every month, like clockwork, [the MSF staff] would call me to check on my treatment,” says Santos Estrela*, who is receiving treatment for advanced HIV from MSF in Beira, Mozambique. “The counselors, the nurses, and the clinical care I received motivated me to keep going. I felt that I mattered."
Social stigma surrounding HIV—along with living far away from health services and an inability to pay for treatment—often prevents people living with HIV from seeking medical care.
Sex workers face additional barriers to treatment, as MSF staff have witnessed firsthand in Mozambique. These people are often turned away from health centers or are concerned about interactions with law enforcement. MSF is working to fill that critical gap in care by providing them with HIV testing, counseling, and contraception services.
Here’s the testimony of Sara Andrade, a peer worker in Beira, Mozambique:
“Being a peer worker who is part of the community is important because it helps other people who still don’t have the courage to trust in health centers…You are the one who encourages people to be brave.”
This email was sent from the U.S. section of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), an international independent medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural and man-made disasters, and exclusion from health care.
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