Strengthening Integration of Family Planning and Cervical Cancer Screening with HIV/AIDS Clinical Prevention within the Zambian Defence Force
Abstract
Jhpiego, a nonprofit affiliate of The Johns Hopkins University, is pleased to offer the Department of Defense (DOD) a proposal for $350,000 to provide support to the DOD’s program for Prevention, Care and Treatment of HIV/AIDS. Through this award, Jhpiego will expand its current DOD programming, integrating family planning (FP) and cervical cancer prevention (CECAP) screening services into HIV care and treatment services approaches to support Zambian Defense Force (ZDF) efforts to rapidly expand HIV/AIDS services to military personnel while building the capacity of ZDF to produce and support qualified clinical providers. Family planning services, especially long-term methods, are rarely offered at ZDF health facilities. Scale up of access to FP methods has been hampered by inconsistent access to FP commodities within ZDF health facilities. Additionally, Zambia has one of the highest annual cervical cancer incidence rates in the world,1 however CECAP services are still relatively inaccessible, being limited to tertiary hospitals, selected district hospitals and a few health centers. Within the ZDF system, there are currently only three sites, which are supported by Jhpiego, that provide static and quality assured CECAP services. To address these gaps in services, Jhpiego will provide technical assistance to expand FP and CECAP services within the ZDF by building capacity to provide integrated FP/HIV and CECAP services through facilities in Eastern, Southern and Western provinces. This will be achieved through the following objectives: -Strengthen the policy environment and advocacy for FP, CECAP and HIV integration in the delivery of health care -Integrate comprehensive FP/HIV services at 14 ZDF sites -Strengthen current CECAP service provision, focused on the single visit approach which combines visual inspection of the cervix after an application of acetic acid (VIA) to detect precancerous lesions, with a goal that 80% of new VIA-positive women eligible for cryotherapy receive it on the same day as their screening and expand services to one additional static ZDF site -Build effective monitoring and evaluation for integrated FP/HIV and CECAP services The project will ensure that women attending routine HIV services at ZDF sites are provided an opportunity to be counseled and screened for cervical cancer and offered FP services regardless of the initial reason for their visit. To leverage the existing work at ZDF sites effectively in this project, Jhpiego will build upon its current work with the ZDF to establish quality FP services through provider training, selected procurements and the introduction of FP-specific monitoring and evaluation tools. Additionally, Jhpiego will work to strengthen and expand CECAP services at Jhpiego-supported sites by integrating CECAP with FP/HIV services as well as carrying out outreach for CECAP in collaboration with outreach services for voluntary medical male circumcision so both women and men are targeted for individual services and encouraged to come as couples.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Mar 09, 2016
- Source ID
- N002441510025
Entities
People
- Joseph Banda