Kids to Care learned us to invest more in the community
Last updated on: 06 June 2024
The Kids to Care model has revealed, further strengthened the need for us to support the communities more to strengthen what we are doing there as the Ministry of Health, working with the different partners that support us to implement our HIV program. Says Dr Eleanor Namusoke Magongo, Lead National HIV Program for Children and Adolescents of the Ministry of Health in Uganda. She has been involved in Kids to Care in Uganda. Watch her interview!
“The Kids to Care model has been very instrumental in teaching us that if we are to end AIDS in children, if we are to reach the last mile in HIV programming for children, we must go to the community. We’ve done a lot at facility level, there’s still a lot that we can do to make a difference at the community. Most of these children spent most of their time in the community with their families. So the Kids to Care model has revealed, further strengthened the need for us to support the communities more to strengthen what we are doing there as the Ministry of Health, working with the different partners that support us to implement our HIV program.
We need to invest more in the community, that’s what we’ve learned from this model. We need to focus on a holistic approach in supporting children and their caregivers. Aidsfonds has been able to work with community partners, to create community structures that are sustainable in supporting children who are living with HIV, and also their families. And very, very important, the Kids to Care model has been instrumental in showing us that we can have successful programs that are aligned with the Ministry of Health approaches.”
About the Kids to Care model
Aidsfonds works in collaboration with governments and in-country partners, to test and scale up community-based paediatric HIV programmes. These are based on our Kids to Care model which:
• Empowers communities to find and support pregnant women and children living with HIV
• Strengthens the links between communities and health facilities.
Community health workers are a crucial link at all four stages of HIV care for children: find, test, start and stay. It means children can live healthily with HIV.
The Lafiyan Yara project is a community-based response to paediatric HIV in Nigeria. Run by Society for Family Health, it aimed to increase uptake of HIV services among children aged 0-14 years and to reduce mother-to-child transmission. The project worked with traditional birth attendants, village health workers and patent and proprietary medicine vendors, who worked to eliminate vertical transmission and identify children living with HIV as early as possible so they can be linked to care and supported to live healthy lives. Lafiyan Yara was implemented between 2019-2022 in eight local government authorities in Taraba state with support from Aidsfonds. In Hausa language Lafiyan Yara means 'well-being of children'.
The Lafiyan Yara project is built on the Kids to Care model, using the four stages of find, test, treat and stay, where early detection of HIV can reduce infant, child and maternal mortality. To facilitate early detection of HIV, community-level mobilisers for health are engaged to conduct effective case identification and linkage to care.
Medan faces significant challenges related to stigma and discrimination against PLHIV and the LGBTQI+ community. Access to healthcare services is limited, as many people are hesitant to seek medical help due to fears of rejection and discrimination. HIV issues and LGBTQI+ rights receive little policy attention, with healthcare services lacking inclusivity and minimal public education, worsening the situation for the LGBTQI+ community in addressing HIV in Medan.
Three new pilot projects for children living with HIV
Three new pilot projects for children living with HIV
In summer 2024 Aidsfonds launched three new pilot projects for children living with HIV. These projects were selected by Aidsfonds’ Paediatric HIV Advisory Panel. The projects aim to test new and innovative community-based approaches to identify and support children living with HIV who are underserved. This is important as these children are hard to reach, falling through the crack in the health care system.
