Predictors of linkage to care following community-based HIV counseling and testing in rural Kenya

Despite innovations in HIV counseling and testing (HCT), important gaps remain in understanding linkage to care. We followed a cohort diagnosed with HIV through a community-based HCT campaign that trained persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) as navigators. Individual, interpersonal, and institutional predictors of linkage were assessed using survival analysis of self-reported time to enrollment. Of 483 persons consenting to follow-up, 305 (63.2%) enrolled in HIV care within 3 months. Proportions linking to care were similar across sexes, barring a sub-sample of men aged 18–25 years who were highly unlikely to enroll. Men were more likely to enroll if they had disclosed to their spouse, and women if they had disclosed to family. Women who anticipated violence or relationship breakup were less likely to link to care. Enrolment rates were significantly higher among participants receiving a PLHA visit, suggesting that a navigator approach may improve linkage from community-based HCT campaigns.Vestergaard Frandse

Beyond Social Desirability Bias: Investigating Inconsistencies in Self-Reported HIV Testing and Treatment Behaviors Among HIV-Positive Adults in North West Province, South Africa.

This mixed-methods study used qualitative interviews to explore discrepancies between self-reported HIV care and treatment-related behaviors and the presence of antiretroviral medications (ARVs) in a population-based survey in South Africa. ARV analytes were identified among 18% of those reporting HIV-negative status and 18% of those reporting not being on ART. Among participants reporting diagnosis over a year prior, 19% reported multiple HIV tests in the past year. Qualitative results indicated that participant misunderstandings about their care and treatment played a substantial role in reporting inaccuracies. Participants conflated the term HIV test with CD4 and viral load testing, and confusion with terminology was compounded by recall difficulties. Data entry errors likely also played a role. Frequent discrepancies between biomarkers and self-reported data were more likely due to poor understanding of care and treatment and biomedical terminology than intentional misreporting. Results indicate a need for improving patient-provider communication, in addition to incorporating objective measures of treatment and care behaviors such as ARV analytes, to reduce inaccuracies

Beyond Social Desirability Bias: Investigating Inconsistencies in Self-Reported HIV Testing and Treatment Behaviors Among HIV-Positive Adults in North West Province, South Africa.

This mixed-methods study used qualitative interviews to explore discrepancies between self-reported HIV care and treatment-related behaviors and the presence of antiretroviral medications (ARVs) in a population-based survey in South Africa. ARV analytes were identified among 18% of those reporting HIV-negative status and 18% of those reporting not being on ART. Among participants reporting diagnosis over a year prior, 19% reported multiple HIV tests in the past year. Qualitative results indicated that participant misunderstandings about their care and treatment played a substantial role in reporting inaccuracies. Participants conflated the term HIV test with CD4 and viral load testing, and confusion with terminology was compounded by recall difficulties. Data entry errors likely also played a role. Frequent discrepancies between biomarkers and self-reported data were more likely due to poor understanding of care and treatment and biomedical terminology than intentional misreporting. Results indicate a need for improving patient-provider communication, in addition to incorporating objective measures of treatment and care behaviors such as ARV analytes, to reduce inaccuracies

Prevalence, motivation, and outcomes of clinic transfer in a clinical cohort of people living with HIV in North West Province, South Africa

IntroductionContinuity of care is an attribute of high-quality health systems and a necessary component of chronic disease management. Assessment of health information systems for HIV care in South Africa has identified substantial rates of clinic transfer, much of it undocumented. Understanding the reasons for changing sources of care and the implications for patient outcomes is important in informing policy responses.MethodsIn this secondary analysis of the 2014 - 2016 I-Care trial, we examined self-reported changes in source of HIV care among a cohort of individuals living with HIV and in care in North West Province, South Africa. Individuals were enrolled in the study within 1 year of diagnosis; participants completed surveys at 6 and 12 months including items on sources of care. Clinical data were extracted from records at participants' original clinic for 12 months following enrollment. We assessed frequency and reason for changing clinics and compared the demographics and care outcomes of those changing and not changing source of care.ResultsSix hundred seventy-five (89.8%) of 752 study participants completed follow-up surveys with information on sources of HIV care; 101 (15%) reported receiving care at a different facility by month 12 of follow-up. The primary reason for changing was mobility (N=78, 77%). Those who changed clinics were more likely to be young adults, non-citizens, and pregnant at time of diagnosis. Self-reported clinic attendance and ART adherence did not differ based on changing clinics. Those on ART not changing clinics reported 0.66 visits more on average than were documented in clinic records.ConclusionAt least 1 in 6 participants in HIV care changed clinics within 2 years of diagnosis, mainly driven by mobility; while most appeared lost to follow-up based on records from the original clinic, self-reported visits and adherence were equivalent to those not changing clinics. Routine clinic visits could incorporate questions about care at other locations as well as potential relocation, particularly for younger, pregnant, and non-citizen patients, to support existing efforts to make HIV care records portable and facilitate continuity of care across clinics.Trial registrationThe original trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT02417233, on 12 December 2014