Pak doctors may learn to fight AIDS in India

TOUFIQ RASHID

NEW DELHI, MAY 26: If all goes well, a team of doctors and
paramedical staff from Pakistan may soon land in India to be trained
before Pakistan starts dispensing anti-retroviral treatment for AIDS
patients. This would form part of the joint initiative of the Indian
and Pakistan governments to fight AIDS together.

According to a proposal forwarded by Dr Asma Bukhari, Director of
Pakistan's National AIDS Control Programme, at a meeting on `South
Asian Regional Consultation on Gender and HIV/AIDS' held in Delhi on
May 18, doctors and paramedical staff from Pakistan may soon receive
training in India for three months before Pakistan starts dispensing
anti-retroviral treatment to AIDS patients. This would be in keeping
with the Pakistan government's proposed plan to provide free drugs to
AIDS patients by 2004-end.

The Pakistan government is currently discussing the matter with NACO
and two privately-owned institutes, one of which is the Tata Memorial
Institute in Mumbai. NACO, for its part, has shown interest in
conducting the training. ``We would be more than pleased to train the
medical personnel from Pakistan to help in the implementation of
providing free treatment to AIDS patients,'' said Meenakshi Dutta
Ghosh, NACO Project Director.

If things go as planned, the first group, comprising five specialised
doctors and an equal number of nurses, is likely to be in India for a
three-month training from July to September. ``If the need arises, we
will send more doctors,'' said Bukhari.

According to Bukhari, Pakistan has chosen India over the West mainly
because of the similarities in the working conditions, the traditions
and the social set-up of the two countries. ``After cricket ties,
what we need is collaboration in public healthcare,'' she added.

``We prefer India to other countries for various reasons. One is that
India has experience and is dealing with a large number of AIDS-
affected people, and another important factor is the fact that India
has already started dispensing the anti-retroviral drugs in the
country,'' Bukhari pointed out.

Compared to other countries, Pakistan has a low prevalence of AIDS
cases. According to Bukhari, while the estimated number of cases
stands at 70,000 to 80,000, only 2,197 persons have been registered
with the country's AIDS control society out of which only 246 are
full-blown AIDS cases. As part of its campaign to combat AIDS, the
Pakistan government plans to provide free drugs to those afflicted by
the disease. `` We have inaugurated five treatment centres and will
be providing the drugs there,'' Bukhari said.

http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=47763