A US faith-based organisation has handed over providing relief to HIV/AIDS patients in Uganda to the Catholic Church.
As of March 1, the Uganda Episcopal Conference is partnering with Centres for Disease Control, providing care and relief to more than 22,656 patients.
This follows the expiry of the Aids Relief Health Systems Strengthening project that has operating since 2005.
“We embarked on selection for a suitable organisation in 2009, and we feel strongly convinced that the Catholic Church will continue from where we stopped to offer relief to Aids patients,” said programmes manager of the expired project, Mr Micheal Johansson.
Speaking at the launch of ACT in Nsambya yesterday, the chairperson of the Uganda Episcopal Conference, Archbishop John Baptist Odama, said they are committed to reducing new infections by availing evidence-based prevention services to keep mothers and children alive.
With funding to the tune of Shs15 billion, the one year programme is expected to maintain 22,656 patients on Anti-Retroviral therapy and enroll 5,500 new patients, avail 34,000 pregnant mothers with prevention of mother-to-child infection services during antenatal, delivery and post-natal care to at least 1,741 HIV pregnant mothers aimed at preventing new pediatric infections and safe male circumsion of 7000 males across the country.
The new project, dubbed Aids Care and Treatment Programme (ACT), will be implemented in various hospitals in Nsambya Hospital in Kampala, Nyenga Hospital in Buikwe and Nkozi Hospital in Mpigi, a total of 11 districts.
Two hospitals under the Anglican Church include Kabarole and Ami Community hospitals in Kabarole and Amudat districts.
Sources
- All Africa
- Image: EzineMark
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