Voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) services and their contribution to access to HIV diagnosis in Brazil

Datos Bibliográficos

ID5226591
AutoresAlexandre Grangeiro (0000-0001-5157-0597, Universidade de São Paulo), Maria Mercedes Loureiro Escuder (0000-0002-3103-2617, Instituto de Saúde), Maria Mercedes Escuder, Maria Amelia Veras (0000-0002-1159-5762, Santa Casa, Brasil), Draurio Barreira (0000-0002-9626-7740, Ministério da Saúde, Brasil), Diogo Ferraz (0000-0002-0443-3183, Ministério da Saúde, Brasil), Dulce Ferraz, Jorge Kayano (Instituto de Saúde)
Año2009
Volumen25
Número9
Páginas2053-2063
Fecha de publicación2009-09-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaCadernos de Saude Publica (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0102-311X • E-ISSN: 1678-4464
EditorialFapUNIFESP (SciELO) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1590/s0102-311x2009000900019
PMID19750392
OpenAlexW1987204142
SCIELO_PIDS0102-311X2009000900019
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas7
Referencias citadas13

The Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) Network was implemented in Brazil in the 1980s to promote anonymous and confidential access to HIV diagnosis. As a function of the population and dimensions of the local epidemic, the study assessed the network's coverage, using data from a self-applied questionnaire and data from the Information Technology Department of the Unified National Health System (SUS), UNDP, and National STD/AIDS Program. The Student t test was used for comparison of means and the chi-square test for proportions. Brazil has 383 VCT centers, covering 48.9% of the population and 69.2% of the AIDS cases. The network has been implemented predominantly in regions where the epidemic shows a relevant presence, but 85.3% of the cities with high HIV incidence lack VCT centers; absence of VCT was associated with more limited health infrastructure and worse social indicators. A slowdown in expansion of the network was observed, with VCT Centers implemented on average 16 years after the first AIDS case in the given municipality. The number of HIV tests performed under the SUS is 2.3 times higher in cities with VCT centers. The network's scope is limited, thus minimizing the contribution by these services to the supply of HIV diagnosis in Brazil

Confidentiality · Economics · Environmental health · Family medicine · Health facility · Health services · Political science · Population · Test (biology) · Turnover · Voluntary counseling and testing · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions · Law · Medicine · Gerontology