Carol Ofori chats World Aids Day with Dr Devarshni Reddy

It's World Aids Day on December 1st, and this year, the theme is 'Collective Action: Sustain and Accelerate HIV Progress/Let Communities Lead'. This day isn't just about creating awareness, but it's also a commemoration to honour the 32-million people who have died worldwide from AIDS-related illnesses.

This year's theme challenges us to collaborate as a community to build on our progress. The CDC government website shared that "An ongoing key challenge to that progress is HIV stigma—in our communities, in health care settings, and public health research and practice—and how stigma affects access to HIV prevention, treatment, and care."

As World Aids Day approaches, Carol Ofori decided to talk to a friend of the show, Durban General Practitioner, Dr Devarshni Reddy. 

Read more: HIV-AIDS expert: HIV no longer a death sentence

Dr Reddy began by discussing the importance of testing. She went into great depth about getting tested depending on your occupation and the risk of your job and also mentioned risky relationships where testing is imperative. 

Carol Ofori then asked about the diagnosis and symptoms. Diagnosis can be tricky because sometimes people have HIV without knowing, and as they go about life, their CD4 count drops. 

"If you are frequently ill, coughing, feverish, or having night sweats," Dr Reddy said it is crucial to get checked out.

The good news is that we have reached a new place with HIV/AIDS, a place where people with HIV can be treated successfully without losing their lives. 

Listen to the full interview below. 

Read more: HIV remission more likely in baby boys than girls, new study finds

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