Chandigarh Health Department to screen over 1K jail inmates for AIDS, TB

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 22

The Chandigarh Health Department has embarked on a comprehensive campaign, “ISHTH”, to screen over 1,000 inmates at the Burail Jail for Tuberculosis (TB), Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Hepatitis B and C infections. The initiative, part of a nationwide effort, aims at tackling the prevalence of these infections among incarcerated individuals and other closed settings in Chandigarh.

Dr VK Nagpal, director of Chandigarh State AIDS Control Society (CSACS), said the primary objective of the campaign was to identify individuals with these infections and ensure their enrolment in the appropriate course of treatment. The screening is scheduled to be completed before June 15, with the Health Department providing free counselling, treatment and medicines for HIV, TB, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and hepatitis to the inmates.

Prisoners have been identified as a special group under the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP). The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) aims at addressing the needs of high-risk populations within prisons and other closed settings across the country. In India, HIV prevalence in prisons has been found to be higher (1.93) as compared to the general community (0.22). Additionally, reports indicate that a significant percentage of inmates engage in high-risk behaviours, including sexual intercourse within the prison environment.

The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) has initiated the Integrated STI, HIV, TB & Hepatitis (ISHTH) Campaign nationwide from May 15 to June 14. The campaign aims at covering all 1,319 prisons and 787 Other Closed Settings (OCS), including Swadhar Homes, Ujjawala, state-run homes and inmates in Juvenile Homes among others.

The campaign’s objectives revolve around providing comprehensive STI, HIV, TB and Hepatitis health services to incarcerated populations. The services offered during the campaign will include ISHTH check-up camps, counselling, diagnosis and treatment for the aforementioned illnesses. This will involve STI counselling, diagnosis and treatment, HIV counselling and screening, referrals for confirmatory tests, linkage to antiretroviral therapy (ART) for positive cases and viral load testing for people living with HIV (PLHIV) on ART.

The campaign will encompass TB screening, sputum collection for suspected cases and linkage of positive cases to the directly observed treatment short-course (DOTS) programme. Additionally, viral hepatitis tests and trimester-wise antenatal check-ups for eligible female inmates will be conducted.

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