BACOLOD City Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran said Monday, the cases of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection-Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/Aids) in the city is already alarming.
Familiaran said the City Health Office (CHO) should intensify its information dissemination to reduce the number of HIV-Aids positive cases.
Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) HIV-Aids Core Team (HACT) records showed that from 2007 to October 2017, Negros Occidental has a total of 598 HIV/Aids cases, of which 304 are from Bacolod City.
Familiaran said the CHO should conduct symposiums in villages and schools to educate the residents and students.
He said that making an advisory is very important to raise awareness among the public, especially the young ones on how to avoid the HIV/Aids.
“We should do our part to reduce the number of HIV-Aids cases,” he added.
Familiaran also countered the report that Bacolod is second to National Capital Region (NCR) in terms of HIV/Aids cases.
“It is unbelievable because there are other cities with bigger number of HIV/Aids cases compared to Bacolod,” he said.
Familiaran added that the CHO should validate the data of the Department of Health Epidemiology Bureau.
Albert Acson of CLMMRH-HACT said in an interview Monday, November 13, that in Western Visayas, from 2007 to October 2017, Bacolod City is only second to Iloilo City in terms of HIV-Aids cases.
From 2007 to October 2017, Bacolod has a total of 304 HIV-Aids only compared to other cities with more cases like Iloilo, Cebu and Davao.
Of the 598 HIV-Aids positive cases in Negros Occidental, 50 of them failed to continue their treatment at CLMMRH while 35 also transferred to other treatment hubs outside the province.
The CLMMRH is the only hospital in Negros Occidental with a HIV-Aids treatment hub.
From 2007 to October 2017, Negros Occidental has a total of 117 deaths.
Acson said some of the HIV-Aids positive are not residents of Bacolod City and Negros Occidental, but still they are included in the lists since they are treated here.
Acson urged the HIV-Aids positive to continue the antiretroviral treatment that can slow the course of the disease and may lead to a near-normal life expectancy.