Expert denies ARV report

By KARI TOTONA
THERE is no shortage of anti-retroviral drug in PNG, the Health Department HIV and STI technical adviser Dr Esorom Daoni said yesterday.
Daoni was refuting to reports published in The National yesterday titled “Anti-retroviral drugs run short.”
 He said the report was not true and that it needed to be corrected as soon as possible for the purpose of transparency and accountability.
 He said that he was very disappointed at Maura Elaripe for going to the media and making a statement that was not a fact because they had the stock of the second line drug kaletra at the Area Medical Clinic in Badili.
He claimed that Elaripe had never contacted him about her situation and that he was very upset with her for telling lies that she had her one month supply of drugs last week.
Daoni clarified that there were adequate stocks of anti-retroviral drugs that were available to a total of 9,000 patients on ARV and that they also received adequate ARV’s for another thousand patients last week that could last 18 months.
Daoni called Dr Gideon Nanu the Southern region ART coordinator during the interview and asked if he could clarify the claims by Elaripe.
He said it was true that Elaripe’s supply of kaletra was down by last Thursday and he had left her drugs at Heduru clinic yesterday.
Meanwhile, when The National contacted Elaripe, she said Nanu was not her doctor on her daily treatment but Dr Jimbanau of Heduru clinic who assessed her everyday.