A new report on medicaltreatment for children living with HIV says that about two-thirds of ailingKenyan youth are not getting access to the antiretroviral (ARV) treatment theyurgently need.A 100-page report byHuman Rights Watch says about 40-thousand Kenyan youth could die in the nexttwo years if they don?t receive the drugs, which are freely provided by thegovernment but are currently only reaching another 20-thousand Kenyan children.Human Rights Watch spokesman Ben Rawlencesays there are not enoughcommunity health workers to help children gain access to testing and treatment.
?It?s primarily the Kenyan government ? it?sprimarily the primary care centers, it?s the clinics, it?s the districthospitals.And to the extent that theyneed assistance with that, they should be requesting that from donors.The WHO and donors are involved.They are providing partnership, but it?s upto the Kenyan government really to take the lead and say what its citizensneed,? he said.
The Human Rights Watch report points out thatantiretroviral drugs are free in Kenya.But it says the Nairobi government?s HIV treatment program has failed toget the lifesaving drugs to children born with HIV and it notes that half ofthem will die before their second birthdays if they go untreated.A recent expansion of infant testing hasstarted to change that, but the report notes that the government needs to domore to reverse child access barriers.Rawlence says it is not an issue of cost.
?The message from everyone is pretty muchunanimous. The drugs should be available.They?re not that expensive.It?sjust a question of getting them to the right places and providing the staffwith the relevant training and the relevant equipment,? he noted.
In addition to the World Health Organization,Rawlence says that other global institutions and donor organizations are makingprovisions and testing materials readily available to eastern and southernAfrican nations, which have experienced the highest number of child deathsworldwide due to HIV.He says Kenyanofficials need to foster greater efforts to build a partnership with theproviders, making use of both parental and government safeguards to ensure thatthe children are properly cared for.
?The Clinton Foundation isalready involved in Kenya.They?ve beensupporting this new test for infants as well as some targeted survivors ofretroviruses.That?s something thatthey could pursue further. But it?s not really the kind of drugs that needs tobe different.It?s the same drug.It?s the ARVs that they already have.It?s administering them in lesserquantities, according to weight.So thechallenge already exists.The drugsalready exist.It?s just making surethat the Kenyan government is giving the relevant training, supplying them,making them available to the children, making sure those children come to theclinics and they show up for their follow-up appointments so that somebody?sactually looking after them,? he said.