[ad_1]
Measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on HIV, tuberculosis and malaria must involve a combination of intensive community engagement, said Ms. Cecelia Senoo, executive director of Hope for Future Generations.
Ms Senoo, who is also the Focal Person for the Global Fund Advocates Network-Africa (GFAN-Africa) in Ghana, a continental social movement demanding health for all, said, as countries struggled to emerge with the COVID-19 responses, there was also a need to maintain awareness of the importance of services to defeat the three diseases.
“Programs must identify and address gender inequalities in their design and response.
“One approach is to meaningfully involve women, supporting the primary health care services necessary to reduce maternal and infant mortality; and supportive caregivers, the majority of whom are women, who care for those who become ill with COVID-19 or other causes. Gender barriers to health must be removed, Ms. Senoo said.
Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Sunday, Ms Senoo, a gender and public health advocate, stated that as countries address COVID-19, health advocates, partners and Governments must ensure that the response to the pandemic must include strategies and lessons learned from the fight against HIV, tuberculosis and malaria and also ensure that resources are allocated for this.
He also said that human rights must be protected while stigma and discrimination must be addressed.
Available COVID-19 resources should also ensure equitable access to screening, testing and treatment, he said.
Also, when a treatment and vaccine are found, it should be available to everyone, and one for free, so no one is left behind.
According to Ms Senoo, COVID-19 continues to remind countries of the need to ensure their health first in order to deal with other facets of life, adding that public health was a prerequisite for social, economic and political stability.
He emphasized that development requires investment in population-based services to prevent, detect and respond to disease.
She argued that HIV, TB and malaria services were largely disrupted during the COVID-19 lockdown, as a model report from the Stop TB Partnership had indicated that, as a result, global TB incidence and deaths in 2021 would rise to intermediate levels for the last time. 2013 and 2016 respectively, which implies a setback of at least five to eight years in the fight against tuberculosis, due to the pandemic.
She said a UNAIDS report had revealed that where there have been severe COVID-19 disruptions, the response to HIV could be delayed even further, 10 years or more.
Ms Senoo therefore called on countries to focus on how best to accelerate the restoration of services to control the burden of disease.
This requires strong global collaboration to accelerate the development, production, and equitable access to new COVID-19 technologies, he said.
“COVID-19 will not be the last pandemic. The next pandemic must find us better prepared, prepared with strong and resilient health systems with a strong focus on primary health care based on strong community health systems.
Source: GNA
