Browsing by Author "de Azevedo, Virginia"

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    Clinical mentorship of nurse initiated antiretroviral therapy in Khayelitsha, South Africa: a quality of care assessment
    (Public Library of Science, 2014) Green, Ann; de Azevedo, Virginia; Patten, Gabriela; Davies, Mary-Ann; Ibeto, Mary; Cox, Vivian
    Introduction To combat the AIDS epidemic and increase HIV treatment access, the South African government implemented a nurse-based, doctor-supported model of care that decentralizes administration of antiretroviral treatment (ART) for HIV positive patients through nurse initiated and managed ART. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) implemented a mentorship programme to ensure successful task-shifting, subsequently assessing the quality of clinical care provided by nurses. METHODS: A before-after cross-sectional study was conducted on nurses completing the mentorship programme in Khayelitsha, South Africa, from February 2011-September 2012. Routine clinical data from 229 patient folders and 21 self-assessment questionnaires was collected to determine the number of patients initiated on ART by nurses; quality of ART management before-after mentorship; patient characteristics for doctor and nurse ART initiations; and nurse self-assessments after mentorship. RESULTS: Twenty one nurses were authorized by one nurse mentor with one part-time medical officer's support, resulting in nurses initiating 77% of ART eligible patients. Improvements in ART management were found for drawing required bloods (91% vs 99%, p = 0.03), assessing adherence (50% vs 78%, p<0.001) and WHO staging (63% vs 91%, p<0.001). Nurse ART initiation indicators were successfully completed at 95-100% for 11 of 16 indicators: clinical presentation; patient weight; baseline blood work (CD4, creatinine, haemoglobin); STI screening; WHO stage, correlating medical history; medications prescribed appropriately; ART start date; and documented return date. Doctors initiated more patients with TB/HIV co-infection and WHO Stage 3 and 4 disease than nurses. Nurse confidence improved for managing HIV-infected children and pregnant women, blood result interpretation and long-term side effects. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of a clinical mentorship programme in Khayelitsha led to nurse initiation of a majority of eligible patients, enabling medical officers to manage complex cases. As mentorship can increase clinical confidence and enhance professional development, it should be considered essential for universal ART access in resource limited settings.
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    The failure of routine rapid HIV testing: a case study of improving low sensitivity in the field
    (BioMed Central Ltd, 2010) Wolpaw, Benjamin; Mathews, Catherine; Chopra, Mickey; Hardie, Diana; de Azevedo, Virginia; Jennings, Karen; Lurie, Mark
    BACKGROUND:The rapid HIV antibody test is the diagnostic tool of choice in low and middle-income countries. Previous evidence suggests that rapid HIV diagnostic tests may underperform in the field, failing to detect a substantial number of infections. A research study inadvertently discovered that a clinic rapid HIV testing process was failing to detect cases of established (high antibody titer) infection, exhibiting an estimated 68.7% sensitivity (95% CI [41.3%-89.0%]) over the course of the first three weeks of observation. The setting is a public service clinic that provides STI diagnosis and treatment in an impoverished, peri-urban community outside of Cape Town, South Africa. METHODS: The researchers and local health administrators collaborated to investigate the cause of the poor test performance and make necessary corrections. The clinic changed the brand of rapid test being used and later introduced quality improvement measures. Observations were made of the clinic staff as they administered rapid HIV tests to real patients. Estimated testing sensitivity was calculated as the number of rapid HIV test positive individuals detected by the clinic divided by this number plus the number of PCR positive, highly reactive 3rd generation ELISA patients identified among those who were rapid test negative at the clinic. RESULTS: In the period of five months after the clinic made the switch of rapid HIV tests, estimated sensitivity improved to 93.5% (95% CI [86.5%-97.6%]), during which time observations of counselors administering tests at the clinic found poor adherence to the recommended testing protocol. Quality improvement measures were implemented and estimated sensitivity rose to 95.1% (95% CI [83.5%-99.4%]) during the final two months of full observation. CONCLUSIONS: Poor testing procedure in the field can lead to exceedingly low levels of rapid HIV test sensitivity, making it imperative that stringent quality control measures are implemented where they do not already exist. Certain brands of rapid-testing kits may perform better than others when faced with sub-optimal use.