21st November, 2016
An NGO, the Global Fund, has commenced a five-day residential training for 25 health workers on HIV/AIDS counselling and testing in Jigawa.
Mrs Stella Eked, a Counseling Psychologist from the Federal Ministry of Health, said at the training in Dutse on Monday that the participants were selected from various health centres in the state capital.
Eked, who is also the Head of the training, said that the programme was being conducted in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health.
According to her, the training is aimed at building the capacity of the health workers on how best to conduct HIV/AIDS counselling and testing.
Eked said that the participants would go to health facilities in rural communities to sensitise youths and women to the dangers associated with the disease.
She urged rural dwellers to go for HIV/AIDS screening to know their status.
“According to a recent survey, Nigeria is ranked third in tuberculosis in Africa, and
Jigawa is among the first 22 states with high burden of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis because of its catchment areas.
“What I mean by catchment areas is that there are many people – both men and women – coming from other places as civil servants, petty traders, labourers and all sort of businessmen.
“Also, some rural men travel to other states in search of greener pasture and end up bringing this disease to their localities,” she said.
According to Eked, the training will educate the participants on how to persuade tuberculosis patients to accept to be tested for HIV/AIDS.
“This is because HIV/AIDs and tuberculosis are mono compromising diseases; so, we assume that most of tuberculosis patients have HIV/AIDS,” she added.
She said that the trainees would be provided with testing kits for smooth and successful conduct of the exercise.
“Basically, the essence of this training is to educate people, particularly rural dwellers, on how best to protect themselves from the two diseases.”