PCEA KIKUYU HOSPITAL ART PROGRAM ACTIVITIES

The ART (Antiretrovirals Therapy) program was started in 2000 by visiting physician from NAZARETH HOSPITAL DR.Brawn.

The clinic used to be held on Wednesdays and was run by a nurse and a Doctor, but did not pick well because of stigma in the society and the high cost of the ARVS.

In June 2005 the hospital entered to an agreement with PEPFER through CMMB to provide free ARVS to the patients in our catchment area. We only had eighty active patients by then.
CHAK and MEDS also fund some of the activities of the ART program.

Currently the clinic has 2067 registered clients i.e. by 31st April 2008.

We have a total of 16 staff
1 doctor
4 clinical officers
9 nurses
1 pharmacy staff
2data staff
1 accountant
1 driver/ adherence officer

We also have more than thirty Community Health Workes (CHWS) working within our catchment area.

AIM
To provide standard quality health care services to the people living with HIV/AIDS, to reduce stigma in the society and to provide accurate information.

OBJECTIVE
To harmonize the activities of all the other sections of the hospital in relation to HIV/AIDS. Actively search for alliances with other organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS in our catchment area.

ACTIVITIES

In the Community
Facilitate alliances with other stake holders in the community and other organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS.
Intensify community mobilization activities.
Collaborate with other organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS to complement our activities without duplication.

At the clinic
To track all clients from ANC who turn positive
Encourage all clinicians to test clients and send them to the Comprehensive Care Clinic (CCC).
To have SOPs to enable us maintain the standards in our activities.

1. Make sure all the clinicians in the clinic are trained on ART care for both adult and pediatrics.
2. Liaise with the hospital Administration to come up with ways of retaining staff after training them.

Adherence
Strengthen the activities of the psychosocial support groups in different parts of our catchment area.
Take services closer to the people.
Train more PLWAs in home based care.

With this in mind we have established partnership with neighboring health institutions to provide ART services to our clients.

To date we have five mobile clinics: Wangige held every Monday, Usher on Tuesdays, Ongata Rongai on Wednesdays, Gachie on Thursday and Ngong on Friday.

Services provided
Training of community health workers
Counseling and testing
Community mobilization i.e. (participating in public gatherings, churches, school education programs, chiefs barazas etc.)

To date we have trained more than 60 community health workers, 30 pastors and 14 PLWAs (People Living With Aids ) on human rights.

The ART program hopes to evolve into a major HIV training and managing centre in the area. We have also started fostering partnership with the community and other stake holders in the community and hope to start a home based care training program to equip the community with the basic skills on patient care at home.