• Latest
Grenada to Introduce Rapid Testing for HIV and Syphilis

Grenada to Introduce Rapid Testing for HIV and Syphilis

5 years ago
Caribbean Nations must fight harmful fisheries subsidies

Postponement of Election of Representative for Agriculture and Fisheries Senator  

29 mins ago
PM out of State for regional meeting

Cornwall is Acting Prime Minister while PM is in The Bahamas

1 hour ago
Government says “no physical altercation” between journalist and junior minister

Grenadian becomes first person from Caricom to head UNFCCC Secretariat

2 hours ago
PM out of State for regional meeting

PM out of State for regional meeting

6 hours ago
G3 awards Charcoals Grill-to-Go

G3 awards Charcoals Grill-to-Go

7 hours ago
Claims of coronavirus at SGU designed to create fear and panic

Covid-19 update: Grenada Dashboard 15 August 2022

7 hours ago
Grenada celebrates 75 Years of Indian Independence

Grenada celebrates 75 Years of Indian Independence

23 hours ago
Crew members of Harbour Master plead guilty

Crew members of Harbour Master plead guilty

1 day ago
Tropical Weather Outlook: Monday, 15 August 2022 (2 am)

Tropical Weather Outlook: Monday, 15 August 2022 (2 am)

1 day ago
Tropical Weather Outlook: Sunday, 14 August 2022 (2 pm)

Tropical Weather Outlook: Sunday, 14 August 2022 (2 pm)

2 days ago
Breaking News: Charged For “Causing Death by Dangerous Driving”

Captain and crew of Harbour Master to appear in court Monday

2 days ago
Honouring Margaret Roberts Steele

Honouring Margaret Roberts Steele

2 days ago
NOW Grenada
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
NOW Grenada
No Result
View All Result

Grenada to Introduce Rapid Testing for HIV and Syphilis

This story was posted 5 years ago
10 August 2017
in Health, Video
3 min. read
Share

by Donella Hosten

To reach the vulnerable, marginalised and key populations in Grenada, the Ministry of Health is beginning a pilot programme to provide Rapid Testing for HIV and Syphilis.

According to Dr Francis Martin, Senior Medical Officer at the Ministry of Health, responsible for the National Infectious Diseases Control Unit (NIDCU), Rapid Testing is one of the methods used for testing for the antibodies of HIV.

It is fairly new to the region and provides a person’s results within minutes, as compared to lab testing which usually provides results several days or weeks later.

When asked about the importance of Rapid Testing, Dr Martin noted that “as a region, we are trying to increase the amount of testing that we do. This is also the case nationally, so most persons who are HIV positive will know their status. For this reason, the Rapid Testing has gained prominence.”

The pilot programme, which is expected to be rolled out in a few weeks, will provide the opportunity for persons to get tested from key populations – who may be otherwise hesitant to come forward to testing, due to stigma and discrimination.

“We are piloting a programme to improve Rapid Testing at some sites that are removed from the hospital. As it is now, the labs doing testing are the major ones such as the General Hospital, Spice Isle Imaging and St Augustine’s Medical,” Dr Martin added.

He noted that this centralised testing has not proven to be as effective when it comes to reaching key populations. Hence the decision to decentralise the testing sites and studies have shown that this is the way to go. There will be 3 additional sites, which have not been named as yet.

As a means of preparing persons to effectively and correctly administer Rapid Tests, workshops have been conducted to train and certify the necessary individuals.

Nurse Jennifer Thomas, a participant from a training workshop held 26 to 29 June, expressed her gratitude for the timeliness of the programme. She said it is important to reach those who are most at risk, including LGBT persons and pregnant women. She believes that stigma and discrimination play a role in persons’ fear of getting tested and knowing their status. “I firmly believe that people are people and must be treated as such.”

The process of validating the Rapid Test kits which will be used in conjunction with the Caribbean Med Labs Foundation has begun, to test HIV and Syphilis together.

Internationally, donor funding is decreasing, and countries are now expected to invest more in their own healthcare. Dr Martin said that fortunately, the current round of support from the Global Fund provides some testing kits, and the Ministry of Health has begun the process of restructuring their funding in order to have more budgetary allocations for HIV response. “In so doing, funding for the HIV rapid tests will be part of that mechanism,” therefore, within a year or so, they should be able to provide their own funding.

NIDCU will also be partnering with organisations such as GrenCHAP and the Grenada Planned Parenthood Association (GPPA) for the programme, and Dr Martin believes that “everybody is going to benefit from this once we start rolling it out.”

NOW Grenada is not responsible for the opinions, statements or media content presented by contributors. In case of abuse, click here to report.
Tags: caribbean med labs foundationdonella hostenfrancis martingrenada planned parenthood associationgrenchaphealthhivinfectionkey populationslgbtmen who have sex with menmsmrapid testingsexstisyphilisvct
Next Post
National Cleanup Begins Friday

NADMA: Have A Safe Carnival

Comment on post Cancel reply

Please enter your valid email address.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

© NOW Grenada. All Rights Reserved. Published by Aqua Design Inc. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us

Copyright NOW Grenada

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. Visit our Privacy Policy | Terms of Use.

Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Visit our Privacy Policy | Terms of Use.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.