Catastrophic increase in Panama AIDS cases

 THE RATE of new AIDS cases in Panama has doubled in the last two years and the local agency devoted to those with the virus describes the increase ass “catastrophic and does not have the staff to cope.

The Foundation for the Welfare and Dignity of People Affected by HIV/AIDS (Probidsida) reports that there are 100 new cases a month the numbers are “catastrophically increasing.”
Orlando Quintero, director of Probidsida, said that the agency does not have the staff to handle the new cases.
Doctors at Santo Tomas Hospital said there are no available beds in the infectious disease ward, and there are 18 inpatients waiting to be transferred to the area, reports La Prensa
Panama has had 21,000 people diagnosed with HIV since 1984, 16,000 of which developed into AIDS leading to some 440 deaths a year.
Quintero said that an apathetic attitude is the primary cause of the increase.
“Panamanians are doing virtually nothing against the advance of HIV/AIDS,” he said.
He said there needs to be prevention campaigns to prevent the virus from spreading.