BACOOR, CAVITE MAY PINAKAMATAAS NA KASO NG HIV

NAGSAGAWA  ang pamunuan ng Department of Health (DOH) sa Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), Department of Education (DepEd)– Bacoor City at Bacoor City Social Hygiene Clinic ng isang araw na “Peer Educator’s Training for Junior and Senior Students and Teachers on HIV/AIDS” sa iba’t ibang public at private schools sa Bacoor City, matapos na makapagtala ang Bacoor City ng pinakamaraming kaso ng HIV-AIDS infection sa buong lalawigan ng Cavite.

Ayon kay Dr. Michael Angelo Marquez, Medical Officer III at Head ng City Social Hygiene Clinic, tinarget nila ang mga mag-aaral para sa seminar workshop dahil mas marami umanong naiuulat na bagong HIV cases sa mga kabataang nasa edad sa pagitan ng 12 hanggang 24 taong gulang lamang.

“We need to empower our students and give them the proper and accurate information on the basic of HIV/AIDS for them to avoid acquiring the virus,” aniya, nang magbigay ng mensahe sa may 161 estudyante, mga guro at guidance counselor na dumalo sa seminar workshop.

“We need to train them, increase their knowledge and encourage behavior change for them to become an effective messenger among their peers for preventing HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the school and the community,” ayon pa kay Dr. Marquez.

Iniulat din ni Dr. Marquez na batay sa datos, mula 1984 hanggang Abril 2019, ang Bacoor City sa Cavite ang nakapagrehistro ng highest cases ng HIV/AIDS sa rehiyon, sa bilang na 726, kasunod ang Dasmariñas na may 686 at Imus City, na may  616. Kinumpirma rin niya na ang lahat ng bagong confirmed cases ng sakit noong Abril ay mula sa 15-24 age group.

Sa inilabas ng HIV/AIDS Registry of the Philippines (HARP) ng DOH, umaabot sa kabuuang 9,926 HIV/AIDS cases ang naitala nila sa rehiyon mula 1984 hanggang April 2019.

Ang mga lalawigan na pinakamaraming naitalang kaso ng sakit ay ang Cavite na may 3,555 kaso, kasunod ang Rizal (2,667), Laguna (2,032), Batangas (1,141) at Quezon (531).

Pinakaapektadong grupo ang 25-34 years old na may 5,187 cases, sumunod ang 15-24-year-old na may 2,673 cases at 35-49 years old na may 1,773 cases.

Ayon naman kay Dr. Mary Grace E. Javier, Medical Officer III ng DepEd Bacoor City, ang aktibidad na isinagawa nila ay bahagi ng “Oplan Kalusugan sa Department of Education” (OK sa DepED).

“The objective is to educate the youth and hear-out their concerns on age-appropriate issues particularly adolescent reproductive health and also ensure wellness of DepEd personnel through the provision of basic medical care for better productivity,” aniya.

“Peer education training programs are effective ways to deliver risk reduction information because of the trust and confidence. Youths rely on their peers for information and they prefer to receive info on most subjects, including sensitive issues such as reproductive health and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV),” dagdag pa ni Javier.  ANA ROSARIO HERNANDEZ