Factors affecting uptake and completion of isoniazid preventive therapy among HIV-infected children at a national referral hospital, Kenya: a mixed quantitative and qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is the most common opportunistic infection and the leading cause of death in people living with HIV (PLHIV). HIV-infected children are at a higher risk of TB infection and disease compared to those without HIV. Isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) is an effective intervention in preventing progression of latent TB infection to active TB. The World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends that all children aged > 12 months and adults living with HIV in whom active TB has been excluded should receive a 6-months course of IPT as part of a comprehensive package of HIV care. Despite this recommendation, the uptake of IPT among PLHIV has been suboptimal globally. This study sought to determine the factors affecting IPT uptake and completion among HIV-infected children in a large HIV care centre in Nairobi, Kenya. METHOD: This was a cross-sectional mixed methods study comprising of quantitative and qualitative study designs. Medical records of 225 HIV-infected children aged 1 to < 10 years, in care in the Kenyatta National Hospital Comprehensive Care Centre (KNH CCC) were retrospectively reviewed, and 8 purposively selected healthcare providers and 18 consecutively selected caregivers of children were interviewed. RESULTS: IPT uptake among CLHIV in care in the KNH CCC was 68% (152/225) while the treatment completion rate was 82% (94/115). IPT-related health education and counselling were the main facilitators of IPT uptake and completion, while fear of adverse drug reaction, pill burden and lack of an integrated monitoring and evaluation system for IPT were the major barriers. CONCLUSION: The IPT uptake in this study was low and fell short of the set global target of > 90%. The completion rate was however acceptable. There is an urgent need to address the identified barriers.

Training tomorrow's leaders in global health: impact of the Afya Bora Consortium Fellowship on the careers of its alumni.

BACKGROUND: Effective leadership is a cornerstone of successful healthcare delivery in resource limited settings throughout the world. However, few programs in Africa prepare healthcare professionals with the leadership skills vital to the success of the healthcare systems in which they work. One such program, the Afya Bora Consortium Fellowship in Global Health Leadership, has been training health professionals since 2011. The purpose of this study was to assess what career changes, if any, the Afya Bora Fellowship's alumni have experienced since completing the fellowship, and to describe those changes. METHODS: The Afya Bora Fellowship is a multidisciplinary, one-year training program that teaches health professionals leadership skills through didactic and experiential learning in four African countries. Between January 2011 and June 2013 the consortium trained 42 nurses and doctors. In November 2013, an electronic survey was sent to all alumni to assess their performance in the workplace post-fellowship. RESULTS: Thirty-one (74 %) of 42 alumni completed surveys. Twenty-one (68 %) reported changes to their position at work; of those, sixteen (76 %) believed the change was due to participation in the fellowship. All alumni reported improved performance at work, and cited the application of a wide range of fellowship skills, including leadership, research, communication, and mentoring. Twenty-six (84 %) alumni spearheaded improvements in their workplaces and almost all (97 %) remained in contact with colleagues from the fellowship. Among the respondents there were five publications, nine manuscripts in preparation, and three international conference presentations. CONCLUSIONS: Afya Bora alumni overwhelmingly reported that the one year fellowship positively influenced both their work and career trajectory. Training health professionals in leadership skills through didactic modules with the opportunity to apply learned skills at attachment sites in the Afya Bora Fellowship has an impact on performance in the workplace and the potential to improve long-term institutional capacity.

Uptake and continuation of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis among women of reproductive age in two health facilities in Kisumu County, Kenya.

INTRODUCTION: In 2020, Kenya had 19,000 new HIV infections among women aged 15+ years. Studies have shown sub-optimal oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) use among sub-populations of women. We assessed the uptake and continuation of oral PrEP among women 15-49 years in two health facilities in Kisumu County, Kenya. METHODS: A retrospective cohort of 262 women aged 15-49 years, initiated into oral PrEP between 12 November 2019 and 31 March 2021, was identified from two health facilities in the urban setting of Kisumu County, Kenya. Data on baseline characteristics and oral PrEP continuation at months 1, 3 and 6 were abstracted from patient records and summarized using descriptive statistics. Missing data in the predictor variables were imputed within the joint modelling multiple imputation framework. Using logistic regression, we evaluated factors associated with the discontinuation of oral PrEP at month 1. RESULTS: Of the 66,054 women screened, 320 (0.5%) were eligible and 262 (82%) were initiated on oral PrEP. Uptake was higher among women 25-29 years as compared to those 15-24 years (77% vs. 33%). Oral PrEP continuation declined significantly with increasing duration of follow-up; 37% at month 1, 21% at month 3 and 12% at month 6 (p<0.05). In the adjusted analysis, women 15-24 years had lower adjusted odds of continuing at month 1 than women ≥25 years (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 0.41, 95% CI: 0.21-0.82). There was no association between being sero-discordant and continuation of oral PrEP at month 1 (aOR; 1.21, 95% CI 0.59-2.50). Women from the sub-county hospital were more likely to continue at month 1 of follow-up compared to women enrolled in the county referral hospital (aOR 5.11; 95% CI 2.24-11.70). CONCLUSIONS: The low eligibility for oral PrEP observed among women 15-49 years in an urban setting with high HIV prevalence calls for a review of the screening process to validate the sensitivity of the screening tool and its proper application. The low uptake and continuation among adolescent girls and young women underscores the need to identify and address specific patient- and facility-level barriers affecting different sub-populations at risk for HIV acquisition.

Factors affecting adherence to antiretroviral therapy among children and adolescents living with HIV in the Mbita Sub-County Hospital, Homa Bay- Kenya.

BACKGROUND: Adequate adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is key to the successful treatment of children and adolescents living with HIV. Continuous ART Adherence is the key factor for virologic suppression and stability of the immune system and prevents the occurrence of opportunistic infections. Children and adolescents struggle with adherence to ART for various reasons, including a poor psychosocial support system and clinic attendance. OBJECTIVES: To describe the uptake of HIV treatment services among children and adolescents in the Mbita Sub-County Hospital, Homa Bay and determine how schooling, clinic attendance, and type of pill/regimen affect adherence to ART and viral suppression. METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted at the Mbita Sub-County Hospital. Medical chart data was abstracted from the hospital files of children and adolescents between the ages of 0-19 years on antiretroviral therapy, between the periods of October 2016 and September, 2017. Data was analyzed using measures of central tendency, and cross-tabulations were done to compare schooling, clinic attendance, type of pill/regimen and viral suppression. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine associations between groups. RESULTS: According to patient files reviewed, majority of patients, 244(91.4%) were enrolled into care within 2 weeks of HIV diagnosis according to guidelines, and 193(73.1 %) remained enrolled in care at end of study period. An overall viral suppression of 74.2 %( 132) was recorded. Of all the files reviewed, 121(74.7%) of patients attending school suppressed against 11(68.8 %) out of school, p=0.280. Suppression among Day and boarding reported at 78.6 %( 11) and 74.8 %( 113) of those out of school, respectively, p=0.533. Participants in primary school, 17(85.0%) suppressed better than those in secondary school, 102(73.4%), p=0.263. Keeping clinic appointments among eligible patient files reviewed decreased from 83.1% at 3 months, p=0.016, to 76.6%, p=0.526 at 6 months and to 52.9% at 12 months, p=0.278. Only 3- month clinic appointment return rates and Enhanced Adherence Counseling (EAC) were significant predictors of viral supression χ2 (2) = 0.280, p = 0.869 (> 0.05). CONCLUSION: The clinic attendance rate within the first 3 months, and Enhanced Adherence Counseling (EAC) were significant predictors of viral suppression, and therefore adherence to antiretroviral therapy.

Factors influencing TB treatment interruption and treatment outcomes among patients in Kiambu County, 2016-2019.

Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of mortality as a single infectious agent globally with increasing numbers of case notification in developing countries. This study seeks to investigate the clinical and socio-demographic factors of time to TB treatment interruption among Tuberculosis patients in Kiambu County, 2016-2019. We retrospectively analyzed data for all treatment outcomes patients obtained from TB tracing form linked with the Tuberculosis Information Basic Unit (TIBU) of patients in Kiambu County health facilities using time to treatment interruption as the main outcome. Categorical variables were presented using frequency and percentages. Kaplan-Meir curve was used to analyze probabilities of time to treatment interruptions between intensive and continuation phases. Log-rank test statistics was used to compare the equality of the curves. Cox proportion model was used to determine determinants of treatment interruption. A total of 292 participants were included in this study. Males were 68%, with majority (35%) of the participants were aged 24-35 years; 5.8% were aged 0-14 years and 5.1% aged above 55 years. The overall treatment success rate was 66.8% (cured, 34.6%; completed 32.2%), 60.3% were on intensive phase of treatment. Lack of knowledge and relocation were the major reasons of treatment interruptions. Patients on intensive phase were 1.58 times likely to interrupt treatment compared to those on continuation phase (aHR: 1.581; 95%CI: 1.232-2.031). There is need to develop TB interventions that target men and middle aged population in order to reduce treatment interruption and increase the treatment success rates in the County and Country.

Building and Sustaining Effective Partnerships for Training the Next Generation of Global Health Leaders.

Introduction: Partnerships are essential to creating effective global health leadership training programs. Global pandemics, including the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and more recently the COVID-19 pandemic, have tested the impact and stability of healthcare systems. Partnerships must be fostered to prepare the next generation of leaders to collaborate effectively and improve health globally. Objectives: We provide key matrices that predict success of partnerships in building global health leadership capacity. We highlight opportunities and challenges to building effective partnerships and provide recommendations to promote development of equitable and mutually beneficial partnerships. Findings: Critical elements for effective partnership when building global health leadership capacity include shared strategic vision, transparency and excellent communication, as well as intentional monitoring and evaluation of the partnership, not just the project or program. There must be recognition that partnerships can be unpredictable and unequal, especially if the end is not defined early on. Threats to equitable and effective partnerships include funding and co-funding disparities between partners from high-income and low-income countries, inequalities, unshared vision and priorities, skewed decision-making levels, and limited flexibility to minimize inequalities and make changes. Further, imbalances in power, privilege, position, income levels, and institutional resources create opportunities for exploitation of partners, particularly those in low-income countries, which widens the disparities and limits success and sustainability of partnerships. These challenges to effective partnering create the need for objective documentation of disparities at all stages, with key milestones to assess success and the environment to sustain the partnerships and their respective goals. Conclusions: Developing effective and sustainable partnerships requires a commitment to equality from the start by all partners and an understanding that there will be challenges that could derail otherwise well-intended partnerships. Guidelines and training on evaluation of partnerships exist and should be used, including generic indicators of equity, mutual benefit, and the added value of partnering. Key Takeaways: Effective partnerships in building global health leadership capacity require shared strategic vision and intentional monitoring and evaluation of goalsInequalities in partnerships may arise from disparities in infrastructure, managerial expertise, administrative and leadership capacity, as well as limited mutual benefit and mutual respectTo promote equitable and effective partnerships, it is critical to highlight and monitor key measures for success of partnerships at the beginning of each partnership and regularly through the lifetime of the partnership.We recommend that partnerships should have legal and financial laws through executed memoranda of understanding, to promote accountability and facilitate objective monitoring and evaluation of the partnership itself.More research is needed to understand better the contextual predictors of the broader influence and sustainability of partnership networks in global health leadership training.

Contraceptive uptake in post abortion care-Secondary outcomes from a randomised controlled trial, Kisumu, Kenya.

AIM: The aim was to explore contraceptive uptake, associated factors and satisfaction among post abortion-care (PAC) seeking women in Kenya. Due to unsafe abortions, almost 120 000 Kenyan women received PAC in 2012, and of these women, 70% did not use contraception before pregnancy. METHODS: This study was nested in a larger randomised controlled trial, where 859 women sought PAC at two public hospitals in Kisumu, in June 2013-May 2016. The women were randomly assigned to a midwife or a physician for PAC, including contraceptive counselling, and followed up at 7-10 days and three months. Associated factors for contraceptive uptake were analysed with binary logistic regression, and contraceptive method choice, adherence and satisfaction level were examined by descriptive statistics, using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22.0. RESULTS: Out of the 810 PAC-seeking women, 76% (n = 609) accepted the use of contraception. Age groups of 21-25 (OR: 2.35; p < 0.029) and 26-30 (OR: 2.22; p < 0.038), and previous experience of 1-2 gravidities (OR 1.939; p = 0.018) were independent factors associated with the up-take. Methods used: injections 39% (n = 236); pills 27% (n = 166); condoms 25% (n = 151); implant 7% (n = 45) and intrauterine device (IUD) 1% (n = 8). At 3-month follow-up of the women (470/609; 77%), 354 (75%) women still used contraception, and most (n = 332; 94%) were satisfied with the method. Reasons for discontinuation were side-effects (n = 44; 39%), partner refusal (n = 27; 24%), planned pregnancy (n = 27; 24%) and lack of resupplies (n = 15; 13%). CONCLUSIONS: PAC-seeking women seem highly motivated to use contraceptives, yet a quarter decline the use, and at 3-month follow-up a further quarter among the users had discontinued. Implant, IUD and permanent method are rarely used. Strategies to improve contraceptive counselling, particularly to adolescent girls, and to increase access to a wide range of methods, as well as provider training and supervision may help to improve contraceptive acceptance and compliance among PAC-seeking women in Kisumu, Kenya.

Post-abortion care with misoprostol - equally effective, safe and accepted when administered by midwives compared to physicians: a randomised controlled equivalence trial in a low-resource setting in Kenya.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of midwives administering misoprostol to women with incomplete abortion seeking post-abortion care (PAC), compared with physicians. DESIGN: A multicentre randomised controlled equivalence trial. The study was not masked. SETTINGS: Gynaecological departments in two hospitals in a low-resource setting, Kenya. POPULATION: Women (n=1094) with incomplete abortion in the first trimester, seeking PAC between 1 June 2013 to 31 May 2016. Participants were randomly assigned to receive treatment from midwives or physicians. 409 and 401 women in the midwife and physician groups, respectively, were included in the per-protocol analysis. INTERVENTIONS: 600 µg misoprostol orally, and contraceptive counselling by a physician or midwife. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Complete abortion not needing surgical intervention within 7-10 days. The main outcome was analysed on the per-protocol population with a generalised estimating equation model. The predefined equivalence range was -4% to 4%. Secondary outcomes were analysed descriptively. RESULTS: The proportion of complete abortion was 94.8% (768/810): 390 (95.4%) in the midwife group and 378 (94.3%) in the physician group. The proportion of incomplete abortion was 5.2% (42/810), similarly distributed between midwives and physicians. The model-based risk difference for midwives versus physicians was 1.0% (-4.1 to 2.2). Most women felt safe (97%; 779/799), and 93% (748/801) perceived the treatment as expected/easier than expected. After contraceptive counselling the uptake of a contraceptive method after 7-10 days occurred in 76% (613/810). No serious adverse events were recorded. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of incomplete abortion with misoprostol provided by midwives is equally effective, safe and accepted by women as when administered by physicians in a low-resource setting. Systematically provided contraceptive counselling in PAC is effective to mitigate unmet need for contraception. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT01865136; Results.

Interprofessional Fellowship Training for Emerging Global Health Leaders in Africa to Improve HIV Prevention and Care: The Afya Bora Consortium.

HIV continues to challenge health systems, especially in low- and middle-income countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. A qualified workforce of transformational leaders is required to strengthen health systems and introduce policy reforms to address the barriers to HIV testing, treatment, and other HIV services. The 1-year Afya Bora Consortium Fellowship in Global Health capitalizes on academic partnerships between African and U.S. universities to provide interprofessional leadership training through classroom, online, and service-oriented learning in 5 countries in Africa. This fellowship program prepares health professionals to design, implement, scale-up, evaluate, and lead health programs that are population-based and focused on prevention and control of HIV and other public health issues of greatest importance to African communities and health service settings. Afya Bora nurse fellows acquire leadership attributes and competencies that are continuously and systematically tested during the entire program. This multinational training platform promotes interprofessional networks and career opportunities for nurses.