Scientific Facts on AIDS

7.2 How can treatment access be expanded?

Ensuring that access to HIV treatment continues to grow rapidly will require a series of efforts:

* Access to confidential and voluntary HIV testing should be broadened so that more people know whether they are infected or not;
* Additional sites where treatment can be provided, which are so far largely concentrated in urban areas, should be established, and all population groups affected, including children, must be assured equal access to treatment;
* Access to drugs that prevent common HIV-related infections should be expanded
* HIV-related stigma and discrimination should be reduced;
* More medical workers should be trained to deal with HIV and AIDS, and the drug supply should be improved;
* The public should be made aware of available treatment services, their benefits and how to use them.