The First Lady of Uganda, Janet Museveni has urged the Ministry of Health to train a work force that will help create a conducive environment to provide maternal services.
Janet Museveni was speaking at the stakeholder’s meeting on the elimination of mother-to-child transmission (EMTCT) at State House, Nakasero on Friday.
Earlier in the day, she tested for HIV at a massive rally at Kololo Independence grounds in Kampala.
She called for need of a trained workforce to provide a conducive environment for provision of services to HIV mothers and exposed babies.
However, the First Lady noted that for that to be effective, there is need for infrastructure, equipment, drugs and other medical supplies in these health centers.
“We must invest heavily in maternal health services,” Janet Museveni said.
She added: “National Medical Stores and its district users must get their act together and work out a mechanism for ensuring that those items are in place.”
At the rally, the public was invited to voluntarily test for HIV testing and access counselling session too.
It should be noted that the passing on of HIV from mother-to-child accounts for more than 95 percent of HIV infections in children under 5 years old. Worse still, these children have a 50 percent possibility of dying before they are 2 years old.
Elimination of Mother-to-child Transmission reduces the risk of an HIV positive mother passing HIV to her baby.
This intervention has been proved to effectively reduce the number of children infected with HIV from their HIV positive mothers if the intervention is properly implemented and fully utilized.
