Programme Summary
Currently, MSH has 41 comprehensive care and treatment centres in secondary and tertiary health centers and 161 PMTCT/HTC sites in various health facilities in Niger, Kwara, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara across Nigeria.
HTC occurs across the entire facilities to determine the HIV status of the patients. In some cases, after testing positive, clients are reluctant to enroll into the programme for some personal reasons which may include denial and sometimes it takes up to several months to accept their status before they enroll into the program even after post-test counselling.
Some of them, once they have come to terms with their status, later come back in the subsequent months to enroll which creates a gap in positivity and enrollment, but others don’t return at all.
However, the expectation is that gap between number of client that tested positives and those that eventual got enrolled should be minimal giving room for status acceptance period etc. Few pointers have shown that there are some repeat testers who already know their positive status and are on care/ART but they come to take the tests anyway (mostly in a different facility) hoping that their results will turn out negative; once they get their positive results they most likely go back to their original facilities and continue with the program or become discouraged and leaves to program adding to the lost to follow up category.
The trend in the program showed that an average of 14% of positives is not enrolled into care, ranging from 1 to as high as 58% in some health facilities. At the project level we estimated that 2 % of this gap may be attributed to repeat testers
Thus, this particular study is an attempt to gain more insight into the possibility of repeat testers among the HIV positive clients and reasons why clients want to repeat the test across MSH/ProACT supported sites with the aim of suggesting actionable interventions to address the gap or improve on our programme and reporting to avoid such gaps.
Objectives
The key objective for the technical assistance is to support operations research targeting repeat testers in selected health facilities in Niger, Kwara, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara.
Specific Responsibilities
Support the Project Directors and staff, to conduct operations research that avails models of health/HIV care that is effective and sustainable.
Work with Associate directors, Project Directors and other technical lead to develop, implement and monitor the project research operations plan.
Support project staff in the analysis, preparation and submission of journal and conference abstracts and papers that contributes to the body of knowledge in health and HIV/AIDS management and health systems strengthening.
Support the project team in conducting and coordinating base-line, midterm, end-line surveys and rapid situation analysis and assessments of project interventions and monitor routine data collection to ensure high quality data of the project
Support the presentation of research findings in a manner that attracts attention and action by policymakers and stakeholders at the community, health facilities, state, national and international levels
Any other duty assigned by supervisor
Deliverables:
Detailed analysis of the repeat tester survey
Support the M&E/program in conducting any other operation research activities as need arises
Provide a comprehensive report at the end of the period reflecting task that were assigned and carried out including findings and recommendations
Qualifications
The Consultant will be a graduate with at least 1 year of operations research/M&E and data analysis experience in ART treatment program/public health practice and or Masters degree in the area of public health
S/he must be computer literate
S/he must have the ability to use excel and DHIS
To apply, visit MSH Career Page
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