This interview is taken from a back copy of the Myanmar Times.
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Thinking Aloud talks to Dr Min Thwe, the manager of the Health Ministry's National AIDS Control Program.
Dr Min Thwe
? When were you born?
I was born in 1961, at Minhla in Magwe Division.
? What is your educational background?
I graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine from the Institute of Medicine (1) in Yangon in 1986. In 2002, I was awarded a Master's Degree of Medical Science in Epidemiology from the University of California, Los Angeles.
? When was the National AIDS Control Program established?
It was established in 1989 in response to the emergence of the disease.
? When were you appointed manager of the program?
In 2003. My position involves designing work plans, fund raising, conducting research, giving health education and supervising the 43 AIDS control teams under the NAP.
? Why were you interested in being involved in the campaign against AIDS?
My interest was roused by a friend who was the leader of a sexually transmitted disease (STD) control team at Myingyan in Mandalay Division. I was working in the Myingyan township hospital at the time. I'm also interested in skin ailments and after being transferred in 1989 to the General Skin and STD Care unit at Yangon General Hospital I started to become involved in the campaign against AIDS, joining the first HIV-AIDS counseling team established by the Ministry of Health. As my interest in the disease increased, I became more devoted to the efforts to control it.
? What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
AIDS is everyone's concern. The NAP alone cannot control its spread. The problem requires close cooperation and coordination with other departments, other ministries, UN agencies, non-government organisations and community-based organisations. There are 18 international NGOs, 17 national NGOs and seven UN agencies coordinating with the NAP.
? What are some of the NAP's main achievements?
One of our major achievement's is that Myanmar became the first country in Southeast Asia to hold national-level exhibitions, in Yangon and Mandalay in 2003 and 2004, to raise public awareness about the disease. We're also conducting campaigns to promote 100 per cent condom use among target populations in 128 townships throughout the country. Activities to prevent the mother-to-child transmission of HIV are being conducted in 54 townships and free anti-retroviral treatments have been provided in Yangon and Mandalay since last year.
? What are the priorities for combating HIV-AIDS?
The NAP focuses its activities on the areas where they are most needed, with a balanced approach to prevention and care activities.
? How does stigmatisation affect the AIDS campaign?
Stigmatisation and discrimination threaten the quality of patient care as well as efforts to control the epidemic's spread. The negative consequences of stigmatisation are increased feelings of social isolation and depression among HIV-AIDS patients. A fear of stigmatisation discourages people from being tested for HIV which, in the case of those with the virus, reduces their chances of receiving the care they need and limits the scope and effectiveness of prevention efforts.
? How do you see the NAP's mission and work in future?
If the program continues at its present scale we will see a slow decline in the prevalence of the disease, as has been the case since 2000. If we want to accelerate the rate of decline we must have a strong commitment among those working in AIDS campaigns, as well as more human and financial resources.
http://www.myanmar.com/myanmartimes/MyanmarTimes15-99/thinking.htm
