Dual indices for prioritizing investment in decentralized HIV services at Nigerian primary health care facilities.

Decentralizing health services, including those for HIV prevention and treatment, is one strategy for maximizing the use of limited resources and expanding treatment options; yet few methods exist for systematically identifying where investments for service expansion might be most effective, in terms of meeting needs and rapid availability of improved services. The Nigerian Government, the United States Government under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program and other donors are expanding services for prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV to primary health care facilities in Nigeria. Nigerian primary care facilities vary greatly in their readiness to deliver HIV/AIDS services. In 2012, MEASURE Evaluation assessed 268 PEPFAR-supported primary health care facilities in Nigeria and developed a systematic method for prioritizing these facilities for expansion of PMTCT services. Each assessed facility was scored based on two indices with multiple, weighted variables: one measured facility readiness to provide PMTCT services, the other measured local need for the services and feasibility of expansion. These two scores were compiled and the summary score used as the basis for prioritizing facilities for PMTCT service expansion. The rationale was that using need and readiness to identify where to expand PMTCT services would result in more efficient allocation of resources. A review of the results showed that the indices achieved the desired effect-that is prioritizing facilities with high need even when readiness was problematic and also prioritizing facilities where rapid scale-up was feasible. This article describes the development of the two-part index and discusses advantages of using this approach when planning service expansion. The authors' objective is to contribute to development of methodologies for prioritizing investments in HIV, as well as other public health arenas, that should improve cost-effectiveness and strengthen services and systems in resource-limited countries.

The association between quality of HIV care, loss to follow-up and mortality in pediatric and adolescent patients receiving antiretroviral therapy in Nigeria.

Access to pediatric HIV treatment in resource-limited settings has risen significantly. However, little is known about the quality of care that pediatric or adolescent patients receive. The objective of this study is to explore quality of HIV care and treatment in Nigeria and to determine the association between quality of care, loss-to-follow-up and mortality. A retrospective cohort study was conducted including patients ≤18 years of age who initiated ART between November 2002 and December 2011 at 23 sites across 10 states. 1,516 patients were included. A quality score comprised of 6 process indicators was calculated for each patient. More than half of patients (55.5%) were found to have a high quality score, using the median score as the cut-off. Most patients were screened for tuberculosis at entry into care (81.3%), had adherence measurement and counseling at their last visit (88.7% and 89.7% respectively), and were prescribed co-trimoxazole at some point during enrollment in care (98.8%). Thirty-seven percent received a CD4 count in the six months prior to chart review. Mortality within 90 days of ART initiation was 1.9%. A total of 4.2% of patients died during the period of follow-up (mean: 27 months) with 19.0% lost to follow-up. In multivariate regression analyses, weight for age z-score (Adjusted Hazard Ratio (AHR): 0.90; 95% CI: 0.85, 0.95) and high quality indicator score (compared a low score, AHR: 0.43; 95% CI: 0.26, 0.73) had a protective effect on mortality. Patients with a high quality score were less likely to be lost to follow-up (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR): 0.42; 95% CI: 0.32, 0.56), compared to those with low score. These findings indicate that providing high quality care to children and adolescents living with HIV is important to improve outcomes, including lowering loss to follow-up and decreasing mortality in this age group.

A rapid assessment of the availability and use of obstetric care in Nigerian healthcare facilities.

BACKGROUND: As part of efforts to reduce maternal deaths in Nigeria, pregnant women are being encouraged to give birth in healthcare facilities. However, little is known about whether or not available healthcare facilities can cope with an increasing demand for obstetric care. We thus carried out this survey as a rapid and tactical assessment of facility quality. We visited 121 healthcare facilities, and used the opportunity to interview over 700 women seeking care at these facilities. FINDINGS: Most of the primary healthcare facilities we visited were unable to provide all basic Emergency Obstetric Care (bEmOC) services. In general, they lack clinical staff needed to dispense maternal and neonatal care services, ambulances and uninterrupted electricity supply whenever there were obstetric emergencies. Secondary healthcare facilities fared better, but, like their primary counterparts, lack neonatal care infrastructure. Among patients, most lived within 30 minutes of the visited facilities and still reported some difficulty getting there. Of those who had had two or more childbirths, the conditional probability of a delivery occurring in a healthcare facility was 0.91 if the previous delivery occurred in a healthcare facility, and 0.24 if it occurred at home. The crude risk of an adverse neonatal outcome did not significantly vary by delivery site or birth attendant, and the occurrence of such an outcome during an in-facility delivery may influence the mother to have her next delivery outside. Such an outcome during a home delivery may not prompt a subsequent in-facility delivery. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, reducing maternal deaths in Nigeria will require attention to both increasing the number of facilities with high-quality EmOC capability and also assuring Nigerian women have access to these facilities regardless of where they live.