Susceptible de changer la donne en matière de traitement pédiatrique du VIH, le dépistage précoce du nourrisson (DPN) sur le lieu de soins est une approche innovante visant à renforcer les programmes de DPN et il améliore les résultats en matière de santé pour les enfants les plus jeunes et les plus vulnérables.

A game changer for paediatric HIV, point-of-care early infant diagnosis (POC EID) is an innovative approach to strengthen EID programs, and improve health outcomes for the youngest and most vulnerable children.

The WHO 2018 guideline update promotes the use of optimal treatment regimens in all populations. Though new, more effective and better tolerated options with a higher genetic barrier to resistance are now available for adults, optimized treatment options for children lag significantly behind.

This fifth edition of the Optimal Formulary and Limited-use List supports the transition to optimal WHO-recommended regimens for infants and children, while giving due consideration to the rapidly evolving treatment landscape and the risks inherent in the uncertain timelines for paediatric drug development.

The International Treatment Preparedness Coalition developed the Key Population Activist Toolkit on PrEP, to equip community activists with the knowledge and skills they need to demand pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

Community-led demand efforts can influence the success of PrEP programming, including influencing how accessible PrEP services are to the community, whether people actually choose to take PrEP, and whether these services are being offered in a way that is suited to the needs of PrEP users.

The Toolkit aims to:

• Equip community activists with the knowledge and skills that they need around PrEP, advocacy, and community mobilization so that they are able to mobilize their communities to demand PrEP
• To enable community PrEP activists to advocate with their governments and service providers to allow key populations access to PrEP services
• To ensure that these services are provided in a manner that is affordable, appropriate to their needs, and addresses access barriers.

The toolkit is intended for individuals, organizations and networks – particularly those representing key populations – wanting to:

• Learn more about PrEP
• Contribute to preventing the spread of HIV in their communities
• Gain the knowledge and skills that they need to mobilize their communities and advocate with community leaders and decision makers for access to PrEP

WHO recommends peer support, including peer counseling, for adolescents and young people living with HIV age 10-24 years (AYPLHIV). Peer support enables providers, programs and services to be more responsive, acceptable, sustainable and relevant, encouraging AYPLHIV to seek and remain engaged in care.

Peer support activities range from support groups to peer-to-peer counseling and treatment buddy programs. Generally, AYPLHIV are formally or informally engaged as peer supporters at health facilities or in communities to provide care for and promote the health and well-being of their peers. A peer supporter can be a peer, or a near-peer (someone a few years older who understands the needs of AYPLHIV). In all cases, the aim is to ensure a source of empathic support and share positive coping strategies.

Studies show that peer support can improve AYPLHIV linkage, adherence, viral suppression, retention and psychosocial well-being. Peer support models can also provide young peer supporters with opportunities for leadership development, capacity-building and youth-led advocacy, helping to combat the negative effects of self-stigma and peer pressure.

This is part of a series of 12 policy briefs by the Child Survival Working Group on scaling up key interventions for children and adolescents living with HIV. Learn more.