TIRUCHY: The District AIDS Prevention and Control Unit (DAPCU), Tiruchy, is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts as the State aims to bag the zero HIV transmission status, from parent to child, awarded by the WHO under the Elimination of Parent To Child Transmission (EPTCT) programme.
Towards this end, the DAPCU has advised every pregnant woman to go through screening process. Besides, mothers would be put through anti-retroviral therapy (ART) if they are diagnosed HIV positive.
Private hospitals in the district have been instructed to direct HIV positive cases to the nearest government hospital or the report sent for record.
“The entire State is almost ready to bag the honours next year. We have started the process to apply for the status, and Tamil Nadu will be the first State to receive it,” said S M Manivanan, District Program Manager, DAPCU.
To qualify for the zero-transmission status, it is necessary to record over 90 per cent of delivery reports for declaring the State infection-free. However, in most cases, only 70 per cent of the deliveries take place in government hospitals and the rest is done by private hospitals.
Explaining how they would be bridging the gap, Manivannan said all private hospitals in the district that conduct deliveries, have been mapped and data flow would be monitored closely.
How the system works
Through simple texts or updating in the website allotted, private hospitals need to keep DAPCU posted on the number of deliveries. This exercise, officials hope, will bridge the gap and achieve the target
