The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines has expressed alarm over the rising cases of HIV and AIDS in the country and called on the government to take a more holistic approach in combating the spread of the deadly disease.
CBCP’s Commission on Health Care executive director Fr. Dan Cansino said the Church has long argued that behavioral change is key to HIV/AIDS response.
“We hope that they will put premium in initiating behavioral change and values formation, especially among the youth, young adults, and out-of-school youths,” Cansino said.
The CBCP official urged the government to give more attention to abstinence and the reduction of sexual partners rather than just focusing much on promoting the use of condoms.
“As long as we pad the strategies versus HIV, we can only expect the number of cases to continually increase,” he said.
The priest made the appeal following a Health department report that the total HIV/AIDS cases in May reached the 1,000 mark for the first time in the country’s history.
According to the latest HIV and AIDS Registry of the Philippines report, there are 1,098 new HIV cases recorded in May alone.
In June 2017, 17 people have died of HIV-related complications, bringing the total number of HIV-related deaths this year to 172.
HIV attacks the body’s immune system which helps in fighting off infections. If left untreated, those with the virus will be vulnerable to opportunistic infections and infection-related cancers.
Over time, when the body’s immune system is severely weakened, the person develops Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS.
The virus can be acquired through the exchange of certain bodily fluids such as blood, semen, and vaginal secretions, but is not present in saliva and sweat. A person may contract HIV through unprotected sexual intercourse, sharing of infected needles, and mother-to-child transmission. The virus stays inside the body for life once acquired.
Although there is still no cure for HIV, there are medicines which stop the virus from multiplying called antiretroviral drugs or ARVs.