Involve medical students in anti-AIDS campaign: Expert
JAKARTA (JP): An Australian expert has proposed that Indonesia use medical students in its anti-AIDS campaign among school teachers and students.
Robert V. Short, a professor at the department of physiology of Monash University in Melbourne, said that medical students are better able to convince high school students about this matter than teachers.
Speaking at a seminar on the prevention and spread of HIV/AIDS yesterday, he said the right way to inform young people about the deadly disease is by making a model classroom and bringing in information about AIDS.
The seminar, which took place at the Cipto Mangunkusumo Central Hospital, was sponsored by the AIDS Special Study Group of the University of Indonesia.
The number of HIV/AIDS sufferers in Indonesia was registered at 312 last month, 10 of whom had died. Less than one fifth of the 312 are foreigners who have since returned to their respective countries.
Short said he once set up a special class to discuss the spread of the disease and how to prevent it.
He said the program can be started here with a small class for teachers to fully inform them about AIDS.
The professor said that young people should be persuaded to postpone sexual activity. Saying that in the west many girls became pregnant outside of marriage.
"It will be a disaster if the situation keeps on going," he said.
"The best sex is no sex until the persons are actually responsible enough for a commitment," Short said.
He also said that sex education does not encourage people to have sex earlier. "Instead," he said, "those who have the most education start sexual activity the latest."
Short said he had already spoken to Minister of Health Sujudi and reports that the minister is very interesting in his idea.
Commenting on the controversy surrounding condoms here, Short confirmed that the use of the contraceptive device is 95 to 97 percent effective in stopping the spread of AIDS.
He said if people use condoms carefully and constantly in their sexual activities, the effort to contain the spread of AIDS will be extremely effective.
"For most sexually active young people, condoms should be the contraceptive of first choice," Short added.
He said that distributing the condoms to prostitutes would only be effective if the distributors teach them not to have sex with customers who refuse to use the condoms.
"Prostitutes do not want to die," he said. "They will do anything not to lose their lives."
Short told The Jakarta Post that a medicine, AZT (Azidothymidine), when given to breast feeding mothers can reduce the percentage of infected babies but not to cure them.
Short also said breast feeding is still the best answer to the problem.
Mothers infected with HIV or AIDS should continue breast feeding their babies, he said.
The only exception, he said, is if they were infected by the virus through a blood transfusion.
Short also said that the World Health Organization has issued HIV prevention strategies including social marketing of condoms, treatment of sexually transmitted diseases, information and education in schools and in mass media, and the promotion of condoms among prostitutes and their clients.(05)