HIV/AIDS
Despite some positive progress in recent years largely due to the implementation of safe sex practices, HIV/AIDS continues to have a devastating impact on every sector of Kenyan society. Although the life expectancy in Kenya for the average citizen remains at 50 years old, the life expectancy of their children is dropping to 44 years of age largely due to the HIV epidemic (WHO). This is a huge step backwards for the developing nation, and is especially alarming as it is happening to the nation’s youth.Data from 2003 shows that a large majority of diseases that Kenyan children die from are from preventable or curable diseases: 24% of children die from neonatal causes, 20% from pneumonia, 16% from diarrheal diseases, and an extremely high 15% from HIV, which is more than twice as high as the regional average for Africa. It is an unfortunate circumstance that a majority of these killers can simply be avoided with proper nutrition and sanitation. In nations such as Kenya, sanitation and clean drinking water are often hard to come by. In rural areas, less than half the people have access to either clean drinking water or improved sanitary conditions (WHO 2006). Thus, with an overall trend of communicable diseases accounting for 81% of deaths in the region, the need for medicine, nutrition, and sanitation cannot be overlooked. As of 2002 (WHO), 38% of all deaths have been due to HIV/AIDS, 10% pneumonia, and 7% diarrheal diseases. In comparison, the USA only has pneumonia coming in at a distant 8th while HIV and diarrheal diseases come in at almost trace amounts. Instead, the top two leading causes of death (adding up to 50%) are diseases often attributed to aging: heart disease and cancer. In Kenya, these are killers as well but with preventable and potentially curable diseases running rampant, heart disease and cancer become dwarfed in comparison.Yet, despite the high risk of infection (10% of people have HIV in urban areas and 5.6% in rural areas with as high as 35% in some rural areas), there is still a staggeringly low percentage of people using condoms (35% female, 47% Male 2003, DHS) and a similarly low percentage of those with have any knowledge of HIV prevention methods (34% female, 47% males in the 15-24 year age range). In a region with such an elevated risk of HIV, HIV prevention methods should be common knowledge. Yet, due to the acute shortage of trained health workers, especially in rural areas, a bottleneck forms around HIV prevention causing not only increased susceptibility for a nation but also an irrational fear of people infected with the virus. Witch hunts for the infected and outcasting HIV positive members from villages is not an uncommon practice in a nation where so little information about HIV exists.
Despite some positive progress in recent years largely due to the implementation of safe sex practices, HIV/AIDS continues to have a devastating impact on every sector of Kenyan society. Although the life expectancy in Kenya for the average citizen remains at 50 years old, the life expectancy of their children is dropping to 44 years of age largely due to the HIV epidemic (WHO). This is a huge step backwards for the developing nation, and is especially alarming as it is happening to the nation’s youth.Data from 2003 shows that a large majority of diseases that Kenyan children die from are from preventable or curable diseases: 24% of children die from neonatal causes, 20% from pneumonia, 16% from diarrheal diseases, and an extremely high 15% from HIV, which is more than twice as high as the regional average for Africa. It is an unfortunate circumstance that a majority of these killers can simply be avoided with proper nutrition and sanitation. In nations such as Kenya, sanitation and clean drinking water are often hard to come by. In rural areas, less than half the people have access to either clean drinking water or improved sanitary conditions (WHO 2006). Thus, with an overall trend of communicable diseases accounting for 81% of deaths in the region, the need for medicine, nutrition, and sanitation cannot be overlooked. As of 2002 (WHO), 38% of all deaths have been due to HIV/AIDS, 10% pneumonia, and 7% diarrheal diseases. In comparison, the USA only has pneumonia coming in at a distant 8th while HIV and diarrheal diseases come in at almost trace amounts. Instead, the top two leading causes of death (adding up to 50%) are diseases often attributed to aging: heart disease and cancer. In Kenya, these are killers as well but with preventable and potentially curable diseases running rampant, heart disease and cancer become dwarfed in comparison.Yet, despite the high risk of infection (10% of people have HIV in urban areas and 5.6% in rural areas with as high as 35% in some rural areas), there is still a staggeringly low percentage of people using condoms (35% female, 47% Male 2003, DHS) and a similarly low percentage of those with have any knowledge of HIV prevention methods (34% female, 47% males in the 15-24 year age range). In a region with such an elevated risk of HIV, HIV prevention methods should be common knowledge. Yet, due to the acute shortage of trained health workers, especially in rural areas, a bottleneck forms around HIV prevention causing not only increased susceptibility for a nation but also an irrational fear of people infected with the virus. Witch hunts for the infected and outcasting HIV positive members from villages is not an uncommon practice in a nation where so little information about HIV exists.
