Imperial College London
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Professor Sarah Fidler BSc. MBBS. FRCP. PhD

Faculty of Medicine, Department of Infectious Disease

Professor of HIV and Communicable Diseases
 
 
 
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Contact

 

+44 (0)20 7594 6230s.fidler

 
 
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Location

 

clinical trial centre Winston Churchill wingMedical SchoolSt Mary's Campus

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Summary

 

Publications

Citation

BibTex format

@article{Phiri:2022:10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7,
author = {Phiri, MM and Hensen, B and Schaap, A and Sigande, L and Simuyaba, M and Simwinga, M and Floyd, S and Fidler, S and Hayes, R and Ayles, H},
doi = {10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7},
journal = {BMC Health Services Research},
title = {Adapting community-based sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents and young people aged 15-24 years in response to COVID-19 in Lusaka, Zambia: the implications on the uptake of HIV testing services},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7},
volume = {22},
year = {2022}
}
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RIS format (EndNote, RefMan)

TY  - JOUR
AB  - BackgroundAcross Sub-Saharan Africa, adolescents and young people (AYP) aged 15-24 have limited access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, including HIV testing services (HTS). In response, the Yathu Yathu study was implemented in two high-density communities in Lusaka, Zambia. Yathu Yathu provides comprehensive, community-based, peer-led SRH services, including differentiated HTS (finger-prick and HIV self-testing) and comprehensive sexuality education (CSE). We describe adaptations to the Yathu Yathu intervention in response to the COVID-19 epidemic, and implications on uptake of HTS among AYP.MethodsYathu Yathu provides SRH services through community-based peer-led spaces. AYP in study communities were offered prevention points cards (PPC), which incentivizes and tracks service use. Social media (WhatsApp©/Facebook©) is used to engage and inform AYP about SRH. Due to COVID-19, hubs closed from April-June 2020. We describe adaptations in response to COVID-19 and, using routinely collected PPC data, describe uptake of HTS before (September 2019-March 2020) and after (July-December 2020) adaptations in response to COVID-19. We describe reach of the Yathu Yathu Facebook page and use qualitative data to describe AYP experiences of SRH service access.ResultsDuring hub closures, CSE was delivered via video on social media, resulting in an increase in Facebook page followers from 539(April) to 891(June). WhatsApp groups evolved as a platform to deliver CSE and COVID-19 information, with higher participation among young people aged 20-24. Key service delivery adaptations included: reducing the number of participants in hubs, mandatory handwashing before entry, use of personal protective equipment by staff and provision of facemasks to AYP. HTS were provided as normal. Adaptations led to fewer AYP attending hubs. Uptake of HTS among AYP visiting hubs for the first time after COVID-19-related closures was higher (73.2%) compared to uptake before adap
AU  - Phiri,MM
AU  - Hensen,B
AU  - Schaap,A
AU  - Sigande,L
AU  - Simuyaba,M
AU  - Simwinga,M
AU  - Floyd,S
AU  - Fidler,S
AU  - Hayes,R
AU  - Ayles,H
DO  - 10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7
PY  - 2022///
SN  - 1472-6963
TI  - Adapting community-based sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents and young people aged 15-24 years in response to COVID-19 in Lusaka, Zambia: the implications on the uptake of HIV testing services
T2  - BMC Health Services Research
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7
UR  - https://www.webofscience.com/api/gateway?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000782604800008&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=1ba7043ffcc86c417c072aa74d649202
UR  - https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12913-022-07878-7
UR  - http://hdl.handle.net/10044/1/99101
VL  - 22
ER  -
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