Opportunities for strengthening provider-initiated testing and counselling for HIV in Namibia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19440448 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Tracy Davyduke (0000-0001-6022-7715, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine), Ismelda Pietersen, David Lowrance (0000-0002-7976-7583), Selma Amwaama (Ministry of Health and Social Services), Miriam Taegtmeyer (0000-0002-5377-2536, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2015 |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue | 8 |
| Pages | 990-994 |
| Publication date | 2015-08-03 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | AIDS Care (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0954-0121 • E-ISSN: 1360-0451 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09540121.2015.1020281 |
| PMID | 25771903 |
| PMCID | PMC4440621 |
| OpenAlex | W1979792617 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 14 |
This short report identifies enablers and barriers to the uptake of provider-initiated testing and counselling for HIV (PITC) in Namibia and identifies key opportunities for strengthening this vital aspect of the national HIV response. We explored this through facility mapping, register reviews and qualitative methods including focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. Four health facilities (clinics and hospitals) in two regions were included in the study. We identified that PITC in Namibia was largely delivered by lay counsellors operating in designated rapid testing rooms located in health facilities and found a large number of missed opportunities for HIV testing through this model. Nurses did not see it as an integral part of their role, were not aware of HIV testing and counselling policy, felt inadequately trained and supported, and experienced staffing shortages. Institutional issues also acted as barriers to nurses performing or initiating discussions about PITC. Wider dissemination and implementation of policy, increasing privacy of consultation spaces and community sensitisation are simple measures that represent opportunities for strengthening this response and ensuring that symptomatic individuals who are unaware of their HIV status do not fall through the net
Business · Economic shortage · Family medicine · Focus group · Health care · Medical education · Political science · Qualitative research · Sociology · Staffing · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · HIV/AIDS Impact and Responses · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions · Medicine · Nursing
A systematic review of task- shifting for HIV treatment and care in Africa
A systematic review of qualitative findings on factors enabling and deterring uptake of HIV testing in Sub-Saharan Africa
Implementing routine provider-initiated HIV testing in public health care facilities in Kenya
Uptake of provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling among women attending an urban sexually transmitted disease clinic in South Africa – missed opportunities for early diagnosis of HIV infection
South African TB nurses' experiences of provider-initiated HIV counseling and testing in the Eastern Cape Province
A qualitative exploration of the human resource policy implications of voluntary counselling and testing scale-up in Kenya
| Citations per year | 0.3 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2016 - 2020 (5) |
| Highly cited | No |