Health experts in Mbarara City are raising alarms over an increasing trend of people living with HIV dropping out of care, particularly young women and girls.
Dorcus Twinabaitu, the HIV focal person in Mbarara City, highlighted this issue during a media training session on Tuesday, noting that many young women cease their treatment within a few months of starting antiretroviral therapy (ART).
“It is of concern and alarming as these girls contribute to the spread of HIV when they return to the community,” said Twinabaitu.
Data from the city shows a worrying decline in the number of young women and girls aged 20-29 remaining in care. Between October and December, 3,441 individuals in this age group enrolled in care, but this number dropped to 3,273 from January to March.
Twinabaitu also pointed out that new HIV infections are significantly higher among young women and girls aged 15 to 29 compared to their male counterparts. “The high numbers of new infections are a result of many young girls engaging in unprotected commercial sex with men over 45, for economic reasons, which poses a challenge,” she explained.
In Mbarara City, the number of new HIV cases between October last year and March this year is notably higher among women than men, with 628 new cases in women compared to 408 in men.
Young women are particularly affected, with 185 cases among those aged 20 to 24 and 158 cases among those aged 25 to 29. In contrast, there were only 34 cases among boys aged 20 to 24 and 91 cases among those aged 25 to 29.
Michael Matsiko, head of the Uganda AIDS Commission Southwestern region, expressed concern over the drop in care among young girls and women. “The drop in young girls and women from care doesn’t reflect well in the fight against HIV since the aim of suppressing the virus to reduce the risk of infecting others is not achieved,” Matsiko said.
He attributed this dropout to ignorance about the dangers of untreated HIV, fatigue from daily medication, and the desire to keep their HIV status secret, especially when moving to new locations.
Dr. Stephen Asiimwe, head of Research at the Uganda AIDS Commission, echoed these concerns, noting that the increasing number of new infections has led to higher HIV prevalence in the Ankole region compared to the national average of 5.1%.
Except for Buhweju and Mitooma, the other ten districts and one city in the Ankole region have higher HIV prevalence rates, with Mbarara District having the highest at 14.4%, followed by Kiruhura at 9.5%, Mbarara City at 8.1%, and other districts with significant rates.
Moses Bindeeba, a person living with HIV, called on the government and stakeholders to address specific needs in the fight against HIV. “The government and other stakeholders should recruit sign language experts at health centers to assist the deaf,” Bindeeba urged.
The rising HIV prevalence and dropout rates from ART programs underscore the urgent need for targeted interventions and sustained support to keep people in care and reduce new infections.