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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
Strengthening Capacity To Prevent Hiv Among Adolescent Girls And Young Women: Supporting Dreams-Like Programming, Project Soar
Strengthening Capacity To Prevent Hiv Among Adolescent Girls And Young Women: Supporting Dreams-Like Programming, Project Soar
HIV and AIDS
Many adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) lack opportunities and access to resources, and experience the harms of discriminatory gender norms. Despite decades of investment in HIV prevention, many AGYW remain invisible, underserved, and at disproportionate risk of HIV infection. The DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) Partnership aims to significantly reduce HIV infections among AGYWs. DREAMS originally launched in 2014 focusing on 10 high-burden countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2017, five additional countries known as DREAMS-Like countries—Botswana, Cote d’Ivoire, Haiti, Namibia, and Rwanda—received support for DREAMS activities. This brief describes the technical assistance Project SOAR is providing …
Education Sector Response To Early And Unintended Pregnancy: A Review Of Country Experiences In Sub-Saharan Africa, Harriet Birungi, Chi-Chi Undie, Ian Mackenzie, Anne Katahoire, Francis Obare, Patricia Machawira
Education Sector Response To Early And Unintended Pregnancy: A Review Of Country Experiences In Sub-Saharan Africa, Harriet Birungi, Chi-Chi Undie, Ian Mackenzie, Anne Katahoire, Francis Obare, Patricia Machawira
Reproductive Health
In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), early and unintended pregnancy leads to a colossal loss of educational opportunities for girls. Existing studies that show associations between early/unintended pregnancy and school dropout lead to critical questions about how the education sector is responding to the issue in SSA. Conducted from August 2014 to April 2015, this review was devoted to an examination of such responses across six countries: Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. The review focused on several key issues, including: education-sector policies for pregnant students and adolescent mothers; integration of pregnancy prevention into sexuality education curricula; the school environment as …
Evaluation Of Hiv Counseling And Testing In Anc Settings And Adherence To Short Course Antiretroviral Prophylaxis For Pmtct In Francistown, Botswana, Carolyn Baek, Tracy Creek, Lee Ann Jones, Louis Apicella, Jennifer Redner, Naomi Rutenberg
Evaluation Of Hiv Counseling And Testing In Anc Settings And Adherence To Short Course Antiretroviral Prophylaxis For Pmtct In Francistown, Botswana, Carolyn Baek, Tracy Creek, Lee Ann Jones, Louis Apicella, Jennifer Redner, Naomi Rutenberg
HIV and AIDS
The vast majority of children infected with HIV are the result of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of the virus during pregnancy, labor, or breastfeeding. Botswana is one of the first countries in the developing world with a national prevention program (PMTCT) to reduce vertical transmission. The Horizons Program of the Population Council, in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Premiere Personnel in Botswana, conducted an evaluation to describe the adherence of pregnant women to the current PMTCT regimen. The report recommends standardizing post-test counseling content through the use of job aids and adapting existing WHO materials, …
Community Involvement In The Prevention Of Mother-To-Child Transmission Of Hiv: Insights And Recommendations, Naomi Rutenberg, Mary Lyn Field-Nguer, Laura Nyblade
Community Involvement In The Prevention Of Mother-To-Child Transmission Of Hiv: Insights And Recommendations, Naomi Rutenberg, Mary Lyn Field-Nguer, Laura Nyblade
HIV and AIDS
Mother-to-child transmission is the primary route of HIV infection in children under 15 years of age. Since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, an estimated 5.1 million children worldwide have been infected with HIV. Clinical trials in several countries have shown that mother-to-child transmission of HIV can be greatly reduced through administering antiretroviral therapy to pregnant women. These trials culminated in a recommendation by UNAIDS and its partners in the Interagency Task Team for the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission that prevention of perinatal transmission should be a part of the standard package of care for HIV-positive women and their children. …
Women, Communities, And The Prevention Of Mother-To-Child Transmission Of Hiv: Issues And Findings From Community Research In Botswana And Zambia, Laura Nyblade, Mary Lyn Field-Nguer
Women, Communities, And The Prevention Of Mother-To-Child Transmission Of Hiv: Issues And Findings From Community Research In Botswana And Zambia, Laura Nyblade, Mary Lyn Field-Nguer
HIV and AIDS
This paper discusses research in Botswana and Zambia that showed gaps in community knowledge about HIV transmission, particularly from mother to child, and yielded insights into community perspectives about the barriers to using voluntary counseling and testing services; the stigma and fear associated with HIV; traditional norms on breastfeeding; and the role of family and community members in women’s decisions to participate in programs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. A separate Population Council publication (“Community involvement in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV: Insights and recommendations”) offers recommendations for community involvement strategies that will encourage program planners to …
Integrating Sti/Hiv Services Into Existing Mch/Fp Programs, Baker Ndugga, Ian Askew
Integrating Sti/Hiv Services Into Existing Mch/Fp Programs, Baker Ndugga, Ian Askew
Reproductive Health
The presence of certain STIs increases the risk of the sexual transmission of HIV. Thus, controlling STIs can reduce the incidence of HIV. Almost all women in the East and Southern African regions attend MCH/FP clinics regularly, and recent surveys have shown that the prevalence levels of many STIs, including HIV, can be high for women seeking FP and antenatal services, even though they are frequently asymptomatic. MCH/FP services are provided by medically trained staff with many of the same skills needed for managing STIs. Consequently, several MCH/FP programs have started looking for ways to integrate STI management strategies, such …
Using A Rapid Assessment Approach To Evaluate The Quality Of Care In An Integrated Program: The Experience Of The Family Health Division, Ministry Of Health, Botswana, Lucy Sejo Maribe, Baker Ndugga Maggwa, Ian Askew, Kate Miller
Using A Rapid Assessment Approach To Evaluate The Quality Of Care In An Integrated Program: The Experience Of The Family Health Division, Ministry Of Health, Botswana, Lucy Sejo Maribe, Baker Ndugga Maggwa, Ian Askew, Kate Miller
Reproductive Health
To strengthen existing efforts by the Government of Botswana in responding to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, USAID provided financial and technical assistance through the Botswana Population Assistance (BOTSPA) project. BOTSPA’s goal was to improve the quality and availability of family planning (FP) and sexually transmitted infection (STI) services through designing, implementing, and monitoring activities that would lead to the eventual institutionalization and sustainability of high-quality FP and STI/HIV/AIDS services. The Ministry of Health requested assistance from the Africa OR/TA Project II to develop and test an approach for routinely measuring the quality of service delivery and assessing skills retention by staff …
The Youth Empowerment Project: Strengthening Ngo Management, Research And Service Delivery Capabilities In Botswana, Mercy Rapelesega, Naomi Rutenberg
The Youth Empowerment Project: Strengthening Ngo Management, Research And Service Delivery Capabilities In Botswana, Mercy Rapelesega, Naomi Rutenberg
Reproductive Health
In an expansion of its efforts to fight a growing HIV epidemic and high teenage pregnancy rates, the Government of Botswana is encouraging nongovernmental organizations (NG0s) to be more active in providing reproductive health (RH) services, and especially HIV/AIDS education and care, to adolescents. NG0s have the potential to assume a larger role as health and education providers as well as implement pilot projects that the public health sector could learn from to increase the availability and quality of RH services for youth. The Africa OR/TA Project II designed and implemented the Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) to assist youth-oriented NG0s …
A Situation Analysis Of The Maternal And Child Health/Family Planning (Mch/Fp) Program In Botswana, Benjamin Baakile, Lucy Sejo Maribe, Baker Ndugga Maggwa, Robert A. Miller
A Situation Analysis Of The Maternal And Child Health/Family Planning (Mch/Fp) Program In Botswana, Benjamin Baakile, Lucy Sejo Maribe, Baker Ndugga Maggwa, Robert A. Miller
Reproductive Health
Botswana has a rapid annual population growth rate and a high total fertility rate. It also has one of the highest levels of contraceptive use in sub-Saharan Africa. Infant and under-5 mortality rates have fallen, yet maternal mortality remains high. The Government of Botswana has developed an extensive network of health care facilities that provide services through an integrated approach. Family planning (FP) services are available at all three levels of the MOH system (hospitals, clinics, health posts). Services for managing sexually transmitted diseases (STDS) have recently undergone a substantial change with the introduction of the Syndromic Approach to STD …