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| (From Right to left) Dr. David Elkins, Executive Director Global Health Program Tanzania-HJFMRI, Honorable Kassim Majaliwa, the Prime Minister, Dr. Mbwanji, Director of Mbeya Zonal Referral hospital and Member of Parliament for Mbeya City Honorable Joseph Mbilinyi during the launch of Methadone clinic at the Mbeya Zonal Referral Hospital. ----------------------------------------------------------- |
The Prime Minister, Honorable Majaliwa Kassim Majaliwa today launched the Methadone Clinic at the Mbeya Zonal Referral Hospital (MZRH) in
the Southern Highlands.
Launching
the clinic and services for People Who Inject Drugs (PWIDs) in Mbeya, the Prime
Minister commended the Mbeya Zonal Referral Hospital for launching the methadone
dispensing services for heroin users in the region.
“This is the fifth methadone
clinic in the country; it is encouraging to see that the Mbeya Zonal Hospital
will now, offer services to our youth who are injecting opioid drugs. Providing
Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) or Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) is one
of the HIV prevention strategies the government is working on, through the Ministry
of Health in its attempts to reduce the risk factors for HIV/AIDS,” said
Honorable Majaliwa.
The
newly- opened methadone clinic is a gift to the people of the United Republic
of Tanzania from the American People and is financially supported by the US Department of Defense-Walter Reed
Program (WRP)/President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), with technical
assistance from the US Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ..
The clinic offers Medically
Assisted Treatment (MAT) for heroin injectors in Mbeya and the Southern
Highlands zone in general; it is expected to serve up to 600 clients in the
first 12 months of operation. . The MAT clinic will dispense methadone as an
alternative to opiate use for the heroin injectors and will also offer HIV counselling,
testing and care and treatment; TB clinic services; cervical cancer screening services,
STI diagnosis and treatment, and substance abuse counseling and psychosocial
support.
According
to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 10% of new HIV infections worldwide are
attributable to injecting drug use, often of an opiate such as heroin. In Tanzania, people injecting drugs are
approximately 30,000 with a high HIV prevalence of 36%, according to the
National Aids Control Program (NACP) national consensus report in 2014. A
simple mapping done in November 2014 by the Regional Medical Officer’s Office of Mbeya and estimated the number of People
Who Inject Drugs in six districts of Mbeya region, namely Kyela, Mbozi, Mbalali
,Chunya,Mbeya City and Mbeya District Council to be 450 (137 PWIDs).
Speaking
during the launch in Mbeya, Dr. David Elkins, the Executive Director for Global
Health Program Tanzania – Henry Jackson Foundation
Medical Research International (HJFMRI ) funded by DOD/ Walter Reed Program said “We are happy to be part of this new
initiative that will dispense methadone to PWIDs and help reduce the HIV
prevalence and transmission in the Southern highland regions, of Tanzania. We all know the challenge of maintaining
safe practices among injecting drug users, hence their vulnerability and
increased HIV risk. Medically-assisted treatment through the prescription of
methadone to injecting drug users is an effective initiative in the prevention
of HIV, as it reduces the opiate use among the heroin users and the associated
high-risk behavior of sharing needles.”
The
Mbeya Zonal Referral Hospital Methadone Clinic which was refurbished by the
Mbeya Zonal referral Hospital has the capacity of serving 1500 clients a day
also has a plan to renovate its rehabilitation center situated in the outskirt
of Uyole Township in Mbeya to accommodate the expected high number of clients
in the region. On behalf of the
US government, President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief ( PEPFAR)also contributed 180 million
Tanzania shillings in support of renovations and the training of clinical
staff. HJFMRI will also provide
continuous technical support to the clinic.
Opioid
Substitution Therapy clinics offering medically assisted treatment for heroin
injectors have grown from one clinic in Dar es Salaam in 2011 to five clinics now.
The MAT clinics in Tanzania has 4276 clients who are on MAT services (1530
clients at Muhimbili National Hospital, 990 clients at Temeke Referral Hospital
, 1506 clients at Mwananyamala Referral
Hospital and , 250 clients at Mnazi Mmoja Hospital Zanzibar).
“The new clinic wouldn’t have been possible
without the support from our Partners - we would like to thank HJFMRI, PEPFAR
and of course the Ministry of Health Community Development, Gender, Elderly and
Children for their support in completion of the clinic” said Dr. Mbwanji, Mbeya
Zonal Referral Hospital Director.
“By working closely with the Tanzania Ministry
of Health, HJFMRI will continue to bring HIV care and treatment services closer
to the communities of Mbeya, Songwe, Rukwa, Katavi and Ruvuma. We believe that
with this collaboration and support from Walter Reed Program/PEPFAR, Tanzania
will reach HIV suppression by 2030.”
added Dr. Elkins.
Emphasizing
the importance of a drug – free generation, the Prime Minister called on the youth
to avoid the use of drugs and use the opportunity to access treatment provided
at the methadone clinic. He applauded Walter Reed Program and the efforts of
the Mbeya Zonal Referral hospital in providing a one stop clinic to provide
harm reduction and combat the HIV epidemic within the country.
About WRP / HJFMRI Tanzania
The
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc.
(HJF) is a global not for profit organization with headquarters in Bethesda,
Maryland, USA and has been actively involved in HIV and AIDS programming for
over 30 years. The U.S. Military HIV Research Program (MHRP) at the Walter Reed
Army Institute of Research is the single largest program supported by HJF and
covers a multitude of active research protocols and PEPFAR activities.
Together, the HJF and MHRP form a strong partnership to develop and conduct
robust international HIV programs in Thailand, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and
Nigeria. MHRP has worked closely with domestic and international research
organizations such as the NIMR-Mbeya Medical Research Centre and the German
based Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) to target at risk populations in Mbeya
for the past 12 years.
The
Henry M. Jackson Foundation Medical Research International Inc. (HJFMRI,) is a
subsidiary of HJF and implements PEPFAR funded HIV prevention, care and
treatment activities in the Southern Highlands as the Walter Reed Program
Tanzania (WRP-T), providing resources, personnel and services to the zone.
Program
activities have been ongoing since 2004 and are conducted in close
collaboration with the Tanzania Ministry of Health, Community Development,
Gender, Elderly and Children. HJFMRI receives technical assistance through MHRP
and administrative and operational support through HJF in the US.
For
any further queries and clarifications, please contact, the WRP communications
officer through email: rsingo@wrp-t.org; or through telephone: +255 252 500052;
+255 767 210 862
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