Dedza District Health Office (DHO) has expressed satisfaction with numbers of men turning up in its health facilities to seek voluntary male medical circumcision (VMMC) services.
Dedza DHO VMMC coordinator Benson Jali said in an interview on Saturday that there is an increase in demand for the services which has seen the DHO beating targets it had set for July 2016-June 2017.
He said the hospital has put under the knife 4 191 men against 4 020 men it had planned to circumcise.
“This is a positive development which shows that more men have started understanding the benefits of male medical circumcision such as reduced risks of contracting HIV,” said Jali.
He attributed the surging demand to sensitisation campaigns which the hospital and other stakeholders have been conducting in the communities.
“At first men were reluctant to come for VMMC due to several myths and misconceptions. For example, some people were alleging that we sell the severed foreskins elsewhere to be used for catching sharks,” said Jali.
He said no health personnel can sell foreskins because “it would be gross unprofessionalism”.
Dedza district Aids coordinator Ernest Kadzokoya, said the district is promoting various measures of reducing HIV transmission which include VMMC.
He commended men in the district for demonstrating a positive change of mindset by being circumcised. n
