Project Goal & objectives
• The project aims to improve the quality of the overall prevention, care and treatment services for HIV patients in Rwanda, with the following specific objectives:
• Specific objectives are:
1. To improve adherence to continuity care and medications for HIV infected patients enrolled in different programs (PMTCT mother-infant pairs, pre-ART adults and children, TB/HIV patients, adult and infant patients on ART)
2. To strengthen linkages between services at health facilities and referral between health facilities and communities for patients enrolled in HIV programs, through enhanced peer counseling, community mobilization for access to HIV services, and psychosocial support.
To improve overall health facility services uptake by the community (ANC, VCT, Family planning, etc.)
Project key strategic domains and Activities
• Mobilize and sensitize local authorities, district health teams and the community leaders to introduce the PEARL program.
• Make all the necessary contact with the different stakeholders at the local level
• Organize and conduct meetings and roundtable for mobilization and sensitization around the PEARL model, of all the stakeholders
• Identify and address challenges and operational barriers to program implementation in collaboration with community leaders, local authorities and the beneficiaries people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA)
• Provide technical assistance to the local associations of PLWHA and district health team for the implementation of the PEARL program
• Provide through the ICAP/MOH PEARL field officers, TA to sites and local association for the identification and selection of PE.
• Assist sites to develop plans for implementing the PEARL program in his/her area.
• Organize and conduct training and retraining of peer educators and social workers.
• Manage the logistics of the PEARL program including purchasing, assembling and distributing outreach kits to peer educators
• Through the ICAP/MOH PEARL field officers, work with health facility social workers to develop effective systems for managing peer educators.
• Strengthen the capacity of associations of PLHA to actively support members to adhere to care and treatment, and meet other psychosocial support needs
• Conduct through the ICAP/MOH PEARL field officers, regular supervision and support visits to all supported sites. Each site should be visited at least once a month.
• Support site social workers and peer educators to collect and report data on the number and nature of outreach contacts
• Identify and address challenges barriers met at sites, to adherences regional officers.
• Meeting with adherence regional team before to send the regional statistic’s report.
• To participate in MDT meeting in his/her area.
Achievements
• 69,822 PLWHA visited and referred to the health facility by peer educators
• 3294 lost follow-up patients visited, counseled and return back to the health Facility
• 63,154 PLWHA referred and received by health facilities
• 2480 PLWHA screened for TB
• 1382 PLWHA screened TB positive
• 3135 pregnant women visited by Peer Educators
• 1,272 pregnant women referred to PMTCT by Peer Educators
• 1,863 pregnant women referred to ANC
• 21 pregnant women tested HIV positive