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Staff delay ARV roll-out
18/08/2004 15:16 - (SA)
Polokwane - A shortage of staff delayed the roll-out of
antiretroviral (ARV) drugs in Limpopo, admitted spokesperson for the provincial health and welfare department, Phuti Seloba, on Wednesday.
The Comprehensive HIV and Aids Care Management and Treatment Programme was only launched in Limpopo last Friday, while other provinces launched their programmes much earlier in the year.
"Health professionals are not queuing up to be employed in Limpopo because it is still considered a rural area, so staff shortages is one of the problems we face," said Seloba.
He said most doctors aren't keen to start their professional lives in rural areas, while other professionals leave the country to earn more money in pounds and dollars.
He said the province also struggles to keep the medical professionals it has.
Currently, there are only 500 doctors in a province that needs 6 000 doctors.
Seloba said the department was spending over R20m annually to train students to work in the province once they'd graduated.
"The money is used to for bursaries and things like skills training," he said.
The ARV programme has been rolled out to seven hospitals, namely Mankweng, Tshilidzini, Letaba, Mapuleng, Mokopane, St Rita's and Polokwane hospital.
"It will also be extended to one more hospital in the Vembe district before the end of the year," said Seloba.
The programme provides a sustainable holistic approach at treating people with HIV/Aids.
Along with antiretrovirals, it provides nutritional support and dietary supplements.
At the launch of the programme, MEC Seaparo Sekoati stressed that antiretrovirals were not a cure for HIV/Aids and that it remained up to individuals to stop the spread of the disease through preventative methods.
- African Eye
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