Free ARV drugs available at community health centers

Dewi Santoso, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

People living with HIV/AIDS in Indonesia would probably never have imagined they would be able to obtain antiretroviral (ARV) drugs at a community health center, that is, not until the government launched a pilot project in Kampung Bali area in Central Jakarta recently.

"I'm lucky to have access to ARV. It's like a dream come true. But I know there are many more who aren't as lucky as me and I want them to enjoy the privilege that I have now," said Ridwan (not his real name), who has been taking ARV drugs for three years now.

The 24-year-old said ARV had helped to restore his appetite and given him more energy than before. He was infected with HIV through sharing needles with other injecting drug users.

"I lost my appetite and used to be tired all the time before I took ARV. But now, I can eat and feel healthy. It works, you see," he said.

ARVs were initially made available to people living with HIV/AIDS at 25 selected hospitals across the country, including Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) in Central Jakarta, Dharmais Cancer Hospital in West Jakarta, Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, West Java and Dr. Soetomo Hospital in Surabaya, East Java.

The first community health center to provide ARV was opened in Kampung Bali, where non-governmental organization Pelita Ilmu Foundation (YPI) is operating.

The government announced last month that it had disbursed Rp 10 billion (US$1.06 million) for free antiretroviral drugs for 4,000 people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA).

The government plans to increase its subsidy for ARV drugs to Rp 24 billion next year for 10,000 people living with HIV/AIDS.

YPI cofounder Samsuridjal Djauzi said on Wednesday that ARV had been made available at the Kampung Bali community health center before.

"But today, we want to make it official, as the government has done. We want people living with HIV/AIDS here to know that they can now obtain the drugs at the local community health center," said Samsuridjal.

The foundation sets a criteria for people living with HIV/AIDS who qualify for ARV treatment at the community health center.

"Aside from testing positive for HIV/AIDS. they must suffer from a heavy cough, massive weight loss and a CD4-cell count of less than 200 cells per cubic millimeter of blood," he said.

CD4 cells -- a type of lymphocyte that coordinate the immune system's response to certain microorganisms -- are measured in cubic millimeters (mm) of blood. A normal count in a healthy adult can vary but is usually between 500 and 1,500 cells per cubic mm. A CD4-cell count equal or below 200 cells per cubic mm is thought to reflect a risk of opportunistic infections.

Samsuridjal said that since the government had given the medication for free, he expected the number of people receiving the treatment to increase.

"Thus far, we've been providing ARV drugs for only 10 people living with HIV/AIDS. We need more as more of them need the drugs," he said.

He said his foundation had recorded 188 people living with HIV/AIDS in Kampung Bali. Approximately 30 percent (or around 57) of them need to take ARV drugs.

According to the Ministry of Health, currently, the are only 1,300 PLWHA who have access to ARV drugs, or only 2.7 percent of the estimated 130,000 PLWHA.

"Now that the government has decided to give the ARV drugs for free, I hope more people living with HIV/AIDS will have access to the drugs," said Samsuridjal.