"HIV Prevention in Latvia Nearly Non-Existent Due to Multiple
Reorganizations"
Baltic News Service  (07.20.10)
Organizational changes and staff shortages are hampering the fight
against HIV/AIDS in Latvia, a local expert there says. And both problems
have been partly responsible for the lack of outreach to high-risk groups
documented in a recent UNICEF report, said Iveta Skripste, a public health
methodologist with the Latvian Center of Infectious Diseases. The report
highlights the need for HIV prevention services among vulnerable youth in
Eastern Europe and Central Asia, especially those involved with the sex
trade and drug use.
Since 2008, intravenous drug use has fallen as the top mode of HIV
infection in Latvia, Skripste said. Last year, 49 percent of new cases were
linked to heterosexual sex, and 27 percent were acquired through drug use.
"But those infected through heterosexual contacts are closely related to the
community of drug users," said Skripste.
Lack of resources at both the national and local levels has hindered
the effective division of labor in tackling HIV, Skripste said. The state
provides prevention supplies such as HIV testing strips and disposable
syringes, but local authorities have the responsibility of paying for rent,
salaries, and other operational expenses for HIV prevention outreach
efforts.
"In the given economic situation, the local governments have very few
such employees, therefore the scope of work is much smaller than in previous
years," Skripste said. Prevention efforts also have suffered from the
reorganizations of several health institutions, including the liquidation of
the Public Health Agency, she said.

CDC HIV/Hepatitis/STD/TB Prevention News Update Thursday, August 05, 2010