Written Answers. - AIDS Awareness Education.
Roger T. Garland
Question:
116
Mr. Garland
asked the
Minister for Health
if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the problem of HIV-AIDS in Ireland is growing at an alarming rate; his views on whether it is crucial that young people be aware to the disease and how to protect themselves from it; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that the AIDS Awareness Education Programme in schools was not evenly run and that some schools made every effort to fulfil their role in advising pupils while other schools were not as interested; and if he will outline the role which the condom has in the fight against AIDS.
Up to 1988-89, the number of cases of AIDS was doubling in Ireland every nine months or so. Since then there has been a slow down in the rate of increase; cases have been doubling roughly every 15 months. This is in line with the epidemiology of the disease elsewhere. There were 216 cases of AIDS on 31 October this year as against 179 on 31 December 1990, New cases of HIV are growing at a rate of ten cases per month. A total of 1,133 persons have tested positive for the HIV infection.
The Government's strategy for tackling this problem is a co-ordinated one and includes monitoring, education/ prevention, treatment and care of patients and research into the condition. The dissemination of good information and the provision of good education is considered to be of vital importance in controlling the spread of the condition.
My Department in conjunction with the Department of Education, have striven to ensure that all young people, by the time they leave second level schools, are aware of the threat that HIV and AIDS poses to their health. This has resulted in the provision of comprehensive resource materials accompanied by in-service training for teachers.
The AIDS resource materials, jointly developed by the Departments of Health and Education, were distributed to all second level schools and vocational training centres such as FÁS centres in September/October 1990.
In addition to being supplied with resource materials two teachers from every second-level school in the country will have had the opportunity, by early 1992, to participate in in-service training seminars which address any queries which teachers might have regarding the materials.
To date 22 such seminars have taken place at centres all over the country. Seminars are facilitated by the Department of Health, Department of Education and health board personnel.
The AIDS resource materials may be adapted or used in conjunction with other programmes which may already be available.
A national evaluation of the programme will be undertaken in early 1992 when all schools have had the opportunity to avail of the in-service accompanying the materials.
However, evaluation forms distributed to teachers during the in-service seminars indicate overwhelming levels of satisfaction both with the quality of the materials provided and with the quality of the in-service seminar itself. Furthermore, during seminars teachers generally indicate a willingness to tackle the HIV/AIDS issue in their schools, as a matter of urgency, if they do not already have a programme in place.
The resource materials have been welcomed by schools and are considered to be comprehensive, appropriate and very easy to use.
The role of the condom in any campaign against the spread of HIV/AIDS is clearly spelled out in both the AIDS education resource materials and in the health promotion unit's booklet "AIDS — the Facts".
For sexually active people who are not in a "one faithful partner" relationship a good quality new condom, correctly used, is the single most effective defence against HIV infection, but condoms may be faulty and/or fail during use and therefore do not eliminate the risk.
