AIDS Day Speaker Urges Compassion and Understanding

kovach

Stigma, denial and complacency still surrounds HIV AIDS, according to the guest speaker at the World AIDS Day candle night ceremony last night.

Rev. Dr. Drew Kovach, is a family practitioner from Hawaii who has cared for AIDS patients and speaks with compassion about the subject of HIV AIDS.

The candlelight ceremony organized by the Department of Health, and the American Samoa Communicable Disease Advisory Board Committee , with participation by the Sosaiete o Faafafine i Amerika Samoa, remembered those who have died from AIDS and drew inspiration and hope for those living with the disease.

According to Dr. Kovach, prevention holds the key to stamping out AIDS.

Citing World Health Organization statistics, he said there’s a slow down in the decline of new HIV/AIDS cases.

There are about 1.9 million new HIV cases worldwide each year for the past five years.

And the number of new HIV cases is rising again.

Keynote speaker Dr. Kovach said prevention efforts need to be reinvigorated.

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