Dr Yaw Okyere, Birim Central Municipal Director of Health, has advised the public to go in for Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) to know their HIV/AIDS status.
He said the advantages in knowing ones status early, far outweighed the disadvantages, adding that, Anti Retroviral drugs were now available at hospitals for people who may test positive for HIV to prolong their lives.
Dr Okyere was speaking at an HIV/AIDS dissemination conference at Akyem Oda on Tuesday organized by the "Hwe Yie" HIV/AIDS Education and Health Information Project, a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
He urged that people translate their awareness on the disease to behavioural change to reduce the rate of infection in the communities.
Dr Benson Konlaan, Technical Adviser to the project, said over the past three years the organization had trained about 150 Community Health Nurses in the dissemination of health information methodologies in 10 communities in the Birim Central Municipality.
He said preliminary results carried by the group pointed to an early sex life, 12-15 years among both sexes, adding that, poverty, peer influence and video/film were identified as likely reasons for early sex and alcohol use.
Dr Konlaan said the result also showed low patronage of condom use in the studied areas.
Mr S. A. Amaning, Director, Ghana, AIDSNETWORK (GHANET), commended the NGO on efforts it was making to create the necessary awareness on the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the area.
He was not happy about advert on alcohol usage on television networks and called on the authorities concerned to take steps to redress the situation.
Mr Amaning stressed the need for sex education to be intensified as well as cultural practices, which could curb immoral practices among the youth to be revived.
He said a lot of money, which otherwise could be use to provide development projects were now being channelled to AIDS education and called for concerted efforts from all to help fight the pandemic.
Mr K. A. Anti, an executive member of the "Hwe Yie" project, in a welcoming address said statistics on the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the Eastern Region was worrying and urged that people refrain from activities that would make them "fall prey" to the disease.
GNA
CGO/DA
5 Nov. 08

NSCE 002
Science Blind Insurance
Authorities of Wa School for the Blind appeal for assistance

Wa, Nov. 5, GNA - Authorities of Wa Methodist School for the Blind have appealed to Government, individuals and organizations for assistance to pay the premiums of the pupils to enable them access affordable and quality health care delivery under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
Mr Sampson Akurugu, Headmaster of the School who made the appeal at the Golden Jubilee anniversary celebration of the school, said parents of the pupils had relinquished their responsibilities including caring for their health needs.
He said since there was no government intervention to cater for the health needs of the pupils, the authorities were finding it difficult to cope with the extra burden.
Mr Akurugu said "the health of every individual is very paramount to his development, but as their parents had abandoned these children without any consideration for their health, the public, individuals, corporate bodies, government and non-governmental organizations should assist us in registering them for NHIS".
On accommodation, he said the school had 175 pupils, 29 teachers and 40 non-teaching staff but there had not been a corresponding increase in facilities over the years compared to the number of pupils.
Mr Akurugu said a dormitory designed for 12 pupils was now occupied by 20 pupils while in extreme cases the authorities had to convert some dormitories into classrooms to accommodate two newly incorporated departments.
These are, a Vocational Department and Functional Department, which caters for blind pupils with multiple disabilities and low academic output.
The school established by Methodist Church of Ghana in 1958 has no assembly hall and the dining hall is being used for meetings and other indoor activities.