Three years ago in Rwanda, a new method of testing for the AIDS virus was introduced, OraQuick is a method that aims to solve the problem of people who were embarrassed to go to the doctor for various reasons, including lack of time,
that people who know him will see him go to these services, whether they are ordinary people or those who provide these medical services, fear that they will test him using a needle and he will suffer; therefore, all this has been seen as a hindrance in finding these testing services, which means there is a large number of people in Rwanda who live with the infection but do not know it, so this method, which is starting to be used here in Rwanda, is popular with many people and is going to be productive.
OraQuick is a quick and easy way for everyone to get tested for HIV (HIV) and efforts have been made because there are those who wanted to know their health status but did not go to the doctor, and they have no other solution
It is a different method from what is used to test blood because oral fluids are used with the help of a small and reliable device where the user is asked to wash them only on the chin; otherwise, he tests himself according to the accompanying instructions.
This new system continues to be brought closer to Rwandans through a project funded by the United Nations Agency for AIDS (ONUSIDA/UNAIDS) and implemented by the Rwandan Association for the Care of People Living with AIDS (ANSP+) in collaboration with the National Health Center
The director in charge of the implementation of the project said that “OraQuick” is a method that came to support the national AIDS program, which includes the fact that in 2030 there will be no new infections among Rwandans.
He said that another way this method will help is to prevent Rwandans and others who were afraid to go and get such testing services. That’s why we worked with pharmacies because Rwandans often don’t go to Ganga to get these services.
He pointed out that this method will cooperate with the others that were common in achieving the country’s goal of 95 numbers three times.
The 95 percent triple rate says that among Rwandans, at least 95% of infected people are able to get tested for HIV, 95% of those who get tested are found to be infected by taking antiretroviral drugs, and 95% of those who take them have immunity at a high level so that this person is strong and his immune system only goes with that of a person who does not live with the AIDS virus.
This program started in 2020 but was preceded by another one that was supposed to be completed that year ‘, which had the goal of achieving the above goals but at a rate of 90%.
said that this method is mainly thought out and put in place for people living in Nyarwanda society who are groups of people who are at high risk of infection and therefore should be taken care of more than others, even though other people are also not allowed to use it.
He said, “Special groups are at a high risk of infection; among them we can say women and girls who work in prostitution or work as traffickers, homosexuals, drug injectors, people who cross borders for different reasons than others, who are the main ones we have set up this method because if they are not tested to go to the medicine, there is a high risk that they continue to spread this virus to the uninfected.”
Those who started using this method said that it is an easy and helpful method for everyone, especially because it prevents them from sitting and waiting for medical lines when they go to health centers.
One said, “It’s really easy to use this new method and it doesn’t take time, because you may be going to have sex with a man and he doesn’t want to use a condom. You first test him to find out his status, and you test him and show him your status, This creates trust between you because it removes the prejudice that one would infect the other.”
Another said: “I often see that we get from different pharmacies but it is a good and promising method because it gives you a reliable answer and soon I cannot live without that test at home.”
How to measure yourself using OraQuick
When a person wants to see the state of his life with the help of this device, you take it and open it properly, first read the instructions of how you are using it, then touch it on the chin that rotates from the top from the right to the left, continue to the bottom chin and do it like the other and rotate the chin from left to right. When you finish that, you take it and put it in a special bottle containing the medicine, and wait for 20 minutes not more than 40 minutes to finish, so that you can get the answer.
Those who are going to use it are asked to follow the instructions found on the paper accompanying these devices, and the drug dealers are encouraged to discuss and explain to their customers about the use of these tests so that you are going to test yourself and do it in a good way and without giving him the correct answer.
When 20 minutes pass, the test taker can see his results. When it shows one red line, it means that the person tested is not infected; if it is two red, it indicates that you may be infected with the AIDS virus, and you need to immediately approach any trained employee at the clinic, health center, or hospital to test you again using the second method in order to confirm if you are infected.
The fact that the test taker is required to go to the doctor does not mean that this method is not reliable; it is also done for the person tested at the health center.
When you are reading the results and you find that there is nothing that the test shows, it means that there is no line in the test or that what you see is not read, which means that the results that the test taker sees are not clear due to various reasons, including the fact that the test taker may not have followed the instructions to test properly.
All you can do is review, but follow the guidelines carefully.
Currently, OraQuick is being distributed in pharmacies in Kigali city. It is a program that will expand to the province because there are some clinics in the city of Kigali and in the province that have had this method. The price on the market is also not equal because it is between 1500 and 4500 Rwandan francs at the same rate, depending on where you buy it.
It is desired to increase the number of these devices in Faumasigar to make more measurements so that at least each pharmacy will receive 1000 measurements from the number between 50 and 200 that were given at the first level.
Nziringirimana Joseph said that this method is being spread in these drug stores so that their number will increase. He said that “RBC, in collaboration with the partner UNAIDS, is putting a lot of effort into this process so that the number of tests is increasing in pharmacies because there are many people who need them, so we hope that there will be no obstacles in their availability.”.
The leader also urges people not to cry, saying that this epidemic is still there and that it continues to show the crowd that the best thing is for everyone to sit down and know how satisfied they are. There are still new infections in the immune system, and the existing program says that no one will be exposed to new infections in 2030.
If there are those who show the infection when they are tested irrevocably, it shows that there are people who are still infected in society, and many of them do not know. The best thing is to test for this virus, find that it is infected, and start treatment early so that his life does not continue to be in danger. But take those drugs well and increase the immunity of his body, and life continues as usual. The test taker is also lucky enough to find that he is alive and take measures to protect his life.”
AMANI Nesta