TSHOLOTSHO district in Matabeleland North is among several districts in Zimbabwe experiencing a severe shortage of anti-retroviral medication despite recording the highest number of people living with HIV.
According to a report by the Parliamentary Thematic Committee on HIV and Aids, Tsholotsho had a total of 18 404 people living with HIV with 10 778 being women, 5 755 men as well as 977 children.
According to the report presented to Parliament by Senator Angeline Tongogara, healthcare facilities in Tsholotsho district reported that they sometimes experience limited stocks of ARVs.
The facilities also revealed that they were forced to repackage their ART into smaller quantities, that is, from three months’ supply per patient to as low as one week where supplies were significantly low.
“They highlighted that sometimes ART centres borrow supplies from each other in order to meet demand. However, they reported that they never had to send patients away without drugs,” Tongogara said.
“The committee was informed that the ideal situation was to have six months' worth of drug supplies. In light of the fact that many people in Tsholotsho were living with HIV in neighbouring countries such as South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique, health facilities informed the committee that in order to ensure that such clients do not default, health institutions were implementing the Malayitsha Model.”
The committee also indicated that some people living with HIV travel long distances, often more than 10 kilometres, to reach a health facility for collection of medication and routine reviews, which may contribute to defaulting.
In an interview, Tsholotsho South lawmaker Musa Ncube said she was not aware of the ARV shortages issue.
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“I will admit that at first villagers had to walk really long distances to reach medical facilities but now we are bridging the gaps. We have built clinics at Mbamba, Jowa, Inala as well as the Chibizela Clinic,” Ncube said.
The committee also visited Mberengwa, Chivi, Guruve Mutawatawa and Zvimba districts.
