Tamale, Aug. 14, GNA- The Ghana Prisons Service in conjunction with the Ghana AIDS Commission is developing new strategies to handle the AIDS, which is threatening both the inmates and workforce of the prisons.

Deputy Director of Prisons, Madam Elizabeth King, who said this in Tamale on Thursday, said emphasis will now be on prevention, care and support for those who have contracted the disease.

Madam King was delivering the keynote address at a one-day "HIV/AIDS impact assessment/advocacy workshop" for about 40 Prisons personnel from the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions. The forum was organized by the Prisons Administration and sponsored by the Ghana AIDS Commission.

Madam King noted that in the Prisons Service, the HIV/AIDS has been identified as a major problem because it has the potential to create problems for the Administration.

She said: "It has been established through research that the disease is popular among those in the 15-49 year age group, who are seen as sexually active.

"In the Prisons Service, those who fall within this age group are considered as the anchor of the establishment since they constitute the youthful and active workforce.

"They must, therefore, be protected from contracting this disease, which has the potential to demobilize the workforce", she added. The Deputy Director of Prisons said another problem was the high medical bills associated with the disease. "As a service, which relies on government subvention, we must ensure that we do not get into a situation where much of our finances will be spent on medical bills and funerals".

Madam King said the Prisons is a unique institution where inmates are vulnerable to all sorts of diseases.

She said: "We must therefore be conscious of the fact that as a closed environment, both inmates and officers stand a greater risk of contracting the disease if intensive education on the mode of transmission of the disease and its management is not done properly". The Deputy Director of Prisons said for the past few years, HIV/AIDS and related diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and pneumonia have been some of the leading causes of death among prisoners and officers.

Madam King said under an initiative dubbed: "The Prisons HIV/AIDS Control Programme", the Prisons Service would provide care and support for people living with AIDS in the prison community through the supply of health needs, shaving kits, toothbrushes, as well as the provision of nutrition and medication for those who have contracted the disease. The Service will promote voluntary counselling and testing among members of the prison community and thereby demystify the disease and reduce the stigma that goes with it.

Alhaji Abdul-Rahman Yakubu, Northern Regional Health Promoter of the Ghana Health Service, said the fight against the disease was no longer the preserve of the sector Ministry, adding, "HIV/AIDS has now assumed a global dimension and as such, it requires the concerted efforts of all to combat it".

Alhaji Yakubu, who was the resource person, noted that even though the awareness of the disease among Ghanaians are as high as 99 percent for men and 98 percent for women, 58 percent of adult males do not perceive themselves as being at risk of infection. 14 Aug. 03