11 Apr 2016

HIV Testing and Counseling is a gateway for prevention, care and treatment.

President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief’s (PEPFAR)counselling and testing programme officer, Mr Peter Loeto, said this at a new directions in global health workshop in Ghanzi recently. 

He stated that HIV testing and counselling formed part of a minimum package of services for every HIV intervention. 

According to the 2013 BIAS research, Botswana’s HIV testing rates stood at 70 per cent with age group of 10-64 year old, making it one of the highest rates in the world.

Mr Loeto said PEPFAR worked on national goal and target to support government to achieve such goals and targets; expanding access to quality HIV testing and counseling services as national goal. 

He said the national targets included increasing proportion of voluntary counselling and testing clients who accessed HIV testing  and counseling as a couple from 8 percent to 30 percent; increase proportion of HIV positive persons accessing integrated TB/HIV services from 63 percent to 80 percent. 

Mr Loeto also indicated that one of the national target is to increase proportion of persons aged 15-49 who have tested within the last 12 months and know their status from 41 percent to 60 percent Furthermore, Mr Loeto noted that PEPFAR with its supported partners of Tebelopele, Ministry of Health and Department of Defense is on a path to achieve national goals and targets. 

Tebelopele as the largest health NGO in Botswana, Mr Loeto indicated that it contribute 40 percent of HIV testing and counseling annually in the country with its country spread networks. 

He also said with the Department of Defense, the target is on military personnel and their families and HIV testing and counseling in hard to reach areas such as border patrols and anti-poaching missions. He also indicated that the military under BDF has implemented an annual HIV testing campaign. 

Although there have been successful strides, Mr Loeto indicated that they are faced with challenges such as fewer men testing in public facilities as compared to women. He therefore said PEPFAR has come with HIV testing and counseling approaches such as increasing the number of people tested through routine HIV testing program and improve linkage to care, supporting updating of national HIV testing counseling guidelines, provide mentorship and supportive supervision to strengthen routine HIV testing by number of tests conducted through routine HIV tests as well as increase number of positives among other strategies. 

Mr Loeto also indicated that although men tests fewer in public set up at national level, they have learnt that community based testing reaches more men in workplace and mobile testing and outreaches, and that they are easily reachable through social activities. Ends