CBC Health Board fights mother to child HIV transmission

Within the framework of the local capacity initiative for the HIV Free North West and South West project, some 37 health districts in the north west and south west region of Cameroon are to scale up the fight against mother to child transmission of HIV as well as improve access to treatment in case of infection.

The revelation was made recently by the Director of the Cameroon Baptist Convention, CBC Health Services, Professor Tih Pius Muffih while launching the local capacity initiative which is part of an ongoing project to eradicate the transmission of HIV from mother to child across the two regions of Cameroon.

According to professor Tih Pius Muffih,the intervention will be in 37 health districts of the north west and south west regions of Cameroon with the goal of increasing HIV free survivors ,which means that a child born of a woman who has the HIV virus should be free of HIV ,besides reducing maternal mortality which is one of the millennium development objectives.

Professor Tih further explained that the project has seven objectives, with the first one being to scale up prevention of mother to child transmission, otherwise known as PMTCT services to all the health facilities in the two regions as well as in 591 health facilities which are in the North West and south west regions. Another objective is to increase the percentage of pregnant women that are tested forHIV to at least 90%.

The representative of the North West regional delegate of public health at the meeting, Dr Odille Tchakounte said the health sector in the North West region has been doing a lot as far as community health is concerned.

She said the CBC Health Board would help the community reduce infant and maternal mortality by the year 2015.Achieving this millennium objective by the target year of 2015 would only be possible in the region if the population actively participates and supports the CBC Health Board in this project.

It is for this reason that traditional rulers were also enjoined to mobilise their local populations to reap the benefits of the project especially those in the hard to reach and underserved areas of the region.

Professor Tih Pius Muffih further explained that within the context of the Option B+ of HIV treatment, men are seriously advised to accompany their spouses for antenatal clinic at least once during pregnancy. He explained that the CBC Health Board has been at the forefront of fighting against the spread of HIV since 1989.

He concluded that the target population is pregnant women because they are the ones that bear children and if they are HIV positive alongside their children, then it can be very dangerous for humanity in the short and long run. For this to succeed, men must be part of it so that the spread can be checked at all levels.