Gross negligence on HIV prevention programme in Sikkim by Dr. M.K. Sharma

By Ms. Rinzing Bhutia

HIV prevention and other programs are facing a huge setback at the Jorthang OST centre of the Jorethang Hospital and HIV testing at the ICTC of the district hospital, Namchi, South Sikkim, due to the unwarranted move of the Health Minister in transferring staffs in those two facilities, under the program of the Sikkim State AIDS Control Society (SSACS).

In order to deter such foreseen challenges and prevent the occurrence of the service access barriers, the Sikkim Drug Users’ Forum (SDUF), with a concern to ensure uninterrupted and client friendly services, earlier submitted a request letter to the Health Minister on the 6th of July 2020. The letter mentioned purely about the urgency to revoke the transfer order and re-instate the earlier staffs at their respective work settings. However, the SDUF, lamented that, the Health Minister did not initiate any remedial measure to the request of SDUF, despite the several and persistent effort put in by the later.

SDUF, through this press release reiterate, that the such unwarranted move by the authority is “uncalled” for and ongoing negligence from by the higher authority, Dr. M.K Sharma, greatly disrupts the continuity of effective HIV service deliveries. It poses a great risk to the lives of people who are currently under the purview of the service and has the potentiality to escalate the spread of HIV, in the near future. SDUF, therefore, called upon the Health Minister to sort out the mess he created, before the situation reached to the level of state Health Crises.

HIV prevention program in Sikkim is vital in containing the public health threat. Programs and several services in different shapes and size such as Harm reduction, Early HIV testing and ART Initiation, and IEC campaigns are the integral part of the whole comprehensive service delivery package as part of the National AIDS control Plan. Yet, with the arrival of Covid 19 crises, the HIV response became widely ignored. It has derailed several ongoing service deliveries, and still poses as a serious threat to further collapse the HIV response in the state.

To this, the SDUF has responded to this crisis, since the inception of the announcement of the Lockdown in the state. Accordingly, SDUF has been tirelessly delivering crucial lifesaving medicines to people suffering from HIV, TB and, Harm reduction services indulging Needles and Syringes and Buprenorphine (OST), referrals, Counseling and bridging the service gaps. These efforts were made to mitigate the HIV Program gaps and challenges with the core principle being “one emerging public health crises should not be a reason to derail another existing public health crises”.