Now management gurus to guide AIDS mission !

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Management gurus to guide AIDS mission

DH News Service New Delhi:

For guiding the Rs-1 billion third phase of the National AIDS

Control Programme (NACP-III) beginning next year, the Centre plans

to rope in top management gurus including experts from the Indian

Institute of Management in Bangalore.

For guiding the Rs-1 billion third phase of the National AIDS

Control Programme (NACP-III) beginning next year, the Centre plans

to rope in top management gurus including experts from the Indian

Institute of Management in Bangalore.

In addition, B-School expertise would be drawn from IIM, Ahmedabad,

McKinsey, Tata Consultancy Services and Hopkins University,

Union Health Minister Dr Anbumani Ramadoss told reporters on the eve

of World AIDS Day.

A consortium comprising management professionals has been created to

evaluate the National AIDS Control Organisation's (NACO) functioning

and performance after the ministry's earlier strategy of NACO's

external assessment fell flat.

" We even floated the tender. But then we realised that no single

individual or institute can review the NACO in a major way so as to

influence the implementation strategies at the ground level. That is

why a consortium was created. I am not satisfied with the first and

second phase of the NACP, " Mr Ramadoss said, adding that within six

months modalities for the assessment would be completed.

Admitting that the government was behind schedule in providing anti-

retroviral therapy to AIDS patients, the minister said currently

15,000 patients were getting the medicine at a cost of Rs 550 per

month in 40 hospitals.

The target is to operationalise 100 centres — 10 per cent of which

may be in the private set up — for providing medicine to one lakh

patients.

" What is worrying is the fact that there is a huge increase in the

number of TB patients with HIV in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and

Tamil Nadu, " said K Sujatha Rao, NACO director general.

The percentage of HIV-TB co-infection has risen from four to 28 in

many hospitals. Some of the hospitals have even reported 40 per cent

TB patients having HIV. However, at community level, the prevalence

is 4.5 per cent.

The third phase, to be launched by the middle of next year, would

focus more on rural areas as evidences showed that the epidemic has

reached villages, Sujatha Rao said, adding that Bihar, Uttar

Pradesh, Rajasthan, Orissa and Punjab would receive additional

emphasis in the new phase.

SONIA, RAHUL TO DO THEIR BIT

Congress President Gandhi and son Rahul Gandhi are all set to

lend their support to HIV/AIDS patients in the Capital on Thursday.

While Ms Gandhi, along with Fernandes and Union Health

Minister Dr Anbumani Ramadoss, will speak in the afternoon to spread

awareness about the disease, first-time MP Rahul Gandhi will attend

an official function in the morning along with Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh.

Besides Rahul Gandhi, who has not spoken much at public functions

after being elected from Amethi, the national convention on HIV/AIDS

for youth leaders will be attended by Sachin Pilot and other young

leaders from Delhi and various states, sources told Deccan Herald.

Ms Gandhi will also address a non-governmental function where

youngsters who walked for 362 days covering 6,813 km in 13 states

for spreading awareness about the disease will be present.

http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/dec012005/national1714152005

1130.asp