Treatment Monitor: Treatment as part of a continuum of care

Prevention

There is a vast experience of prevention work in South Africa, from information and edutainment programmes, focus on youth, to the advancement of female controlled methods in the form of microbicides and femidom distribution

  • In support of the diaphragm. Zena Stein, Ida Susser and Marion Stevens report from Mexico on the diaphragm: inexpensive – a single purchase may last for years; easy to use and virtually hidden from the partner. Would it give ‘harm reduction’ to HIV, as it did for pregnancy?. Nursing Update, September 2008, pg25-26

Female Controlled Methods – microbicides and femidoms
Contacts:

Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

While access to treatment has been the area of contestation, women’s sexual and reproductive health has been seriously neglected. We are particularly interested in exploring the impact of HIV and AIDS on women and their ability to access services. We acknowledge that the HIV epidemic is feminized with most infections infecting and affecting women. We support integrated services that are decentralized and as such we would want to advocate for provision of women receiving HIV care within a sexual and reproductive health and rights framework. There is a need to monitor the provision of services in a SRRH framework as women’s rights are often seriously eroded. The HST treatment monitor is keen to develop a focus in this area. Please forward any contact or links that you think would add to this area.

PPTCT plus/PMTCT/Perinatal Transmission

We note that there is a variation of ways to address programmes known initially as Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT), Prevention of Parent to Child Transmission PPTCT and PPTCT Plus – in which the plus indicates the need to treat the parent with HAART. The treatment monitor acknowledges the differences in emphases and would advocate for responsibility and treatment to be a borne and accessible to all parties. There is a need to implement routine testing so as to improve access to all treatment programmes

Contacts:
Loveday Penn Kekana - http://www.wits.ac.za/chp/
Tanya Doherty: Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV/AIDS (PMTCT)

Drugs for Women

Particular drugs including Evavirenz (Stockin) and Tenofovir are contra-indicated for fertile, pregnant and breastfeeding women. Women need to know this information and be given choices with regard to contraception and drug options. There also needs to be monitoring in this regard to learn more about the impact of these drugs.

Cervical Cancer

Cervical Cancer is an AIDS defining illness and HIV positive women do present with precancerous lesions more often. The incidence of cervical cancer remains at 30:100 000 women and is the cancer that affects most women in South Africa. There is a need to explore this area as it is unknown what the implications are for women on HAART. Previously HIV positive women with cervical died of another opportunistic disease.