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The news that a prisoner dying with AIDS in South Africa, has been
released from jail to be with his family in his last few days (1), is
welcome, albeit a grim reminder that living with HIV/AIDS and indeed many
other chronic illnesses in prisons, is still a double sentence for inmates
in many parts of the world.
Even though the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, (UNAIDS),
the organization mandated by the global league of nations to spearhead and
coordinate the response to the pandemic, has repeatedly called for equity
of HIV/AIDS services between those in prisons and those outside (2), few
countries adhere to this minimum standard and in several, prisoners
receive inferior AIDS prevention, care and support programmes.
In Zambia, for example, a recent report from Prison Headquarters
reported that in 2004 alone, some 449 inmates died of AIDS related
illnesses (3). The report lamented the high rates of infectious diseases
in the country’s prisons due to congestion and the poor hygiene in most
prisons. The exact number of inmates with HIV/AIDS in Zambian prisons is
not known although a study we conducted in 1998/9 revealed an HIV
seroprevalance rate of 27% compared to the national average then of about
19%. Main risk behaviours found were; tattooing and male-to-male sex while
15% of inmates had a positive serological test for sexually transmitted
infections (4). No condoms are distributed in the country’s jails and as a
precaution tattooing has been discouraged. Only a few prisoners with
HIV/AIDS are currently on antiretroviral therapy.
Given this background, it is imperative that standard HIV/AIDS
services backed by an aggressive campaign to improve living conditions in
prisons are urgently needed in Zambia and other countries affected by the
AIDS pandemic. These services must be equivalent to those found outside
and should include counseling services as well as access to antiretroviral
therapies.
All over the world, people with HIV/AIDS are now living longer and
more useful lives, and those of them living in prisons must not continue
to suffer from an infection whose management is now well understood. There
is no legal, medical, or moral justification for HIV/AIDS to continue
being a double sentence in prisons!!!
Authors: Oscar Simooya and Nawa Sanjobo, Copper belt University, P O
Box 21692, Kitwe, Zambia; email: cbumed@zamnet.zm.
References:
1. Sidley P. Prisoner with AIDS released to die at home. BMJ 2005;
331:1246
2. UNAIDS. Prisons and AIDS: UNAIDS Point of view. UNAIDS 1997; Geneva,
Switzerland.
3. Commissioner of Prisons. Speech to HIV/AIDS workshop on Home Based
Care, Kamfinsa Prison, Kitwe, Zambia, 21st March 2005.
4. Simooya OO, Sanjobo N, Sijumbila G, Kaetano L Musonda R, Mukonze F,
Tailoka F. “ Behind Walls “: A study of HIV risk behaviors and
seroprevalance in prisons in Zambia. AIDS 2001; 15(13); 1741 –1744.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests:
No competing interests
22 December 2005
Oscar Ozmund Simooya
Medical Officer
Nawa Sanjobo
Copperbelt University, P O Box 21692, Kitwe, Zambia
The double sentence of HIV/AIDS in prisons and other correctional establishments
The news that a prisoner dying with AIDS in South Africa, has been
released from jail to be with his family in his last few days (1), is
welcome, albeit a grim reminder that living with HIV/AIDS and indeed many
other chronic illnesses in prisons, is still a double sentence for inmates
in many parts of the world.
Even though the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, (UNAIDS),
the organization mandated by the global league of nations to spearhead and
coordinate the response to the pandemic, has repeatedly called for equity
of HIV/AIDS services between those in prisons and those outside (2), few
countries adhere to this minimum standard and in several, prisoners
receive inferior AIDS prevention, care and support programmes.
In Zambia, for example, a recent report from Prison Headquarters
reported that in 2004 alone, some 449 inmates died of AIDS related
illnesses (3). The report lamented the high rates of infectious diseases
in the country’s prisons due to congestion and the poor hygiene in most
prisons. The exact number of inmates with HIV/AIDS in Zambian prisons is
not known although a study we conducted in 1998/9 revealed an HIV
seroprevalance rate of 27% compared to the national average then of about
19%. Main risk behaviours found were; tattooing and male-to-male sex while
15% of inmates had a positive serological test for sexually transmitted
infections (4). No condoms are distributed in the country’s jails and as a
precaution tattooing has been discouraged. Only a few prisoners with
HIV/AIDS are currently on antiretroviral therapy.
Given this background, it is imperative that standard HIV/AIDS
services backed by an aggressive campaign to improve living conditions in
prisons are urgently needed in Zambia and other countries affected by the
AIDS pandemic. These services must be equivalent to those found outside
and should include counseling services as well as access to antiretroviral
therapies.
All over the world, people with HIV/AIDS are now living longer and
more useful lives, and those of them living in prisons must not continue
to suffer from an infection whose management is now well understood. There
is no legal, medical, or moral justification for HIV/AIDS to continue
being a double sentence in prisons!!!
Authors: Oscar Simooya and Nawa Sanjobo, Copper belt University, P O
Box 21692, Kitwe, Zambia; email: cbumed@zamnet.zm.
References:
1. Sidley P. Prisoner with AIDS released to die at home. BMJ 2005;
331:1246
2. UNAIDS. Prisons and AIDS: UNAIDS Point of view. UNAIDS 1997; Geneva,
Switzerland.
3. Commissioner of Prisons. Speech to HIV/AIDS workshop on Home Based
Care, Kamfinsa Prison, Kitwe, Zambia, 21st March 2005.
4. Simooya OO, Sanjobo N, Sijumbila G, Kaetano L Musonda R, Mukonze F,
Tailoka F. “ Behind Walls “: A study of HIV risk behaviors and
seroprevalance in prisons in Zambia. AIDS 2001; 15(13); 1741 –1744.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests