This document outlines evidence-based practices for retention in care of mother-infant pairs in the context of elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (EMTCT) in Eastern and Southern Africa.

Developed by the UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) with support from HIV colleagues and partners, the report provides a review of the evidence-base on improving care for women living with HIV and their infants. It builds on the conceptual framework outlined in UNICEF’s Community-Facility Linkages report through an extensive literature review, stakeholder consultations and country visits.

Ten evidence-based practices were identified in the areas of service quality, human resources, use of health information and demand generation. The report describes these practices, including key considerations for implementation, helpful tools and resources. As countries take these evidence-based practices to scale, even greater numbers of vulnerable women and children will be given the opportunity not only to survive, but also to thrive, and the world will move closer to ending AIDS among children.

This toolkit was developed by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) with funding from a consulting agreement with Johnson & Johnson, in support of the New Horizons Advancing Pediatric HIV Care Collaborative. 

The Disclosure of HIV Status Toolkit for Pediatric and Adolescent Populations provides general guidance on disclosure of HIV status in pediatric and adolescent HIV care. This document contains tools for use in clinical practice to build the capacity of health care workers, caregivers, and pediatric and adolescent patients themselves—in assisting with and delivering successful and informed disclosure. It is primarily targeted for use among health care workers.

Specific modules support:

• Health care workers or caregivers to disclose an HIV status to a child or adolescent.
• Horizontally-infected adolescents to disclose their status to their caregivers.
• Adolescents to disclose to their social networks, community, and romantic partners.

Find out more at the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) website. 

Les tests de diagnostic décentralisés réalisés au moyen de plates-formes présentes sur les lieux de soins ou à proximité peuvent considérablement améliorer les soins prodigués aux patients en élargissant l’accès à des services de diagnostic essentiels, en réduisant les délais d’obtention des résultats et en améliorant l’intégration aux soins.

Decentralized diagnostic testing using point-of-care (POC) or near-POC platforms can significantly improve patient care by expanding access to critical diagnostic services, reducing result turnaround time (TAT), and improving linkage to care.

Led by UNICEF and WHO, the Global Breastfeeding Collective is a partnership of more than 20 prominent international agencies calling on donors, policymakers, philanthropists and civil society to increase investment in breastfeeding worldwide. The Collective’s vision is a world in which all mothers have the technical, financial, emotional and public support they need to breastfeed. The Collective advocates for smart investments in breastfeeding programmes, assists policymakers and NGOs in implementing solutions, and galvanizes support to get real results to increase rates of breastfeeding, thereby benefiting mothers, children and nations.

Download the advocacy brief on breastfeeding and HIV above. Learn more at unicef.org/breastfeeding.

Innovative Approaches for Eliminating Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV: Experiences from Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and Uganda

This report documents several promising practices focused on community engagement for PMTCT implemented under the Optimizing HIV Treatment Access for Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women (OHTA) Initiative. OHTA, a UNICEF-supported initiative with funding from the Governments of Norway and Sweden, aimed to accelerate access to Option B+ for the elimination of mother-to-child transmission in Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and Uganda. 

Find out more here. 

Innovative Approaches for Eliminating Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV: Experiences from Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and Uganda

This report documents several promising practices focused on community engagement for PMTCT implemented under the Optimizing HIV Treatment Access for Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women (OHTA) Initiative. OHTA, a UNICEF-supported initiative with funding from the Governments of Norway and Sweden, aimed to accelerate access to Option B+ for the elimination of mother-to-child transmission in Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and Uganda. 

Find out more here.