When the enhanced community quarantine began, one of the concerns raised by people living with HIV (PLHIV)—many of whom are from the LGBTQ+ community—was how to get antiretroviral treatment (ART) without leaving their homes. To meet this demand, the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman started a program to deliver ART refills and other related services.
On Mar. 30, UP announced this on Twitter, noting that ART may be ordered for free through the Sustained Health Initiatives of the Philippines, Inc. (SHIP). Residents of Metro Manila and nearby areas can call (023) 491-3479 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. to book a Grab or Lalamove to deliver the ARTs they need. They just need to provide the following details below:
Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) Refills and Consults
ART and other related services for UPD community members may be availed FREE thru the Sustained Health Initiatives of the Philippines, Inc. (SHIP), during this time of Enhanced Community Quarantine.#ARTinECQ#StopHIVAIDS pic.twitter.com/sMpcXWm1dH
— UP Diliman (@Official_UPD) March 30, 2020
For those living outside Metro Manila, they can email their details to [email protected].
If you’re looking for other ways to get medication refills, Catriona Gray shared on Instagram some steps from the Department of Health (DOH) that PLHIVs can take like coordinating with LGUs.
Despite enacting the HIV/AIDS Policy Act of 2018 last year, the DOH is still seeing an increase in HIV/AIDS cases in the country every month. As of August 2019, there have been 1,228 new cases. This brings the total from the period of January 1984 (the time when the first HIV/AIDS case in the Philippines was recorded) to August 2019 to 70,740.
Thanks to modern medicine, PLHIVs can achieve an undetectable viral load, meaning virus levels become so low in the human body that it cannot be transmitted to another person.
If you know a PLHIV who’s looking for assistance, feel free to share this information. You might just save a life during the ECQ.
[Inquirer.net]
Photo courtesy of Unsplash
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