Counseling key to stemming rise in HIV cases, say disease experts

More comprehensive counseling before and after testing for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) may help stem the fast rising incidence of the disease in the country and encourage more patients to avail themselves of the free antiretroviral (ARV) drugs given out by the government, according to infectious disease experts.

In a health forum on Tuesday, Dr. Desse Roman, an infectious disease specialist at Manila Doctors Hospital, said persons with HIV who did not receive proper pre- and post-test counseling were usually the ones who avoided seeing their doctors for follow-ups.

“Without proper counseling, they don’t know what kind of support is available to them and they are usually ill-advised so they opt not to consult with physicians until they are showing the late stages of the disease,” Roman said.

Under the Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998 (Republic Act No. 8504), a patient cannot be screened for HIV without undergoing counseling.

Staying negative

The law also mandates that post-test advice be given to patients on how to keep their status negative or how to access treatment and where to get support in case of a positive test result.

Not all of those screened for the virus, however, were receiving the right kind of counseling, Roman told reporters.

Dr. Mary Ann Aguadera, a psychiatrist, said at the forum that a good pre-test counseling would help address the concerns and fears of patients and embolden them to push through with a screening for the virus.

Good-quality counseling would also translate knowledge about the disease into behavioral change among patients to prevent the spread of HIV, she said.

“What is currently happening is that with all the information that is available, people use HIV testing as a scare tactic. We never present HIV testing and counseling in a very positive way and so many are discouraged from undergoing screening,” said Aguadera.

“But if you are able to give a good pre-test counseling, patients will easily understand the disease and they will be given treatment early before the virus overwhelms the body,” she said.

HIV could eventually lead to AIDS, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, a condition in which the body’s immune system is attacked and damaged by the virus, ultimately leading to death.