Introduction: Several efforts have been put in place to fight HIV and AIDS in Kenya.
Several scientific studies have contributed to this fight. Sustainable financing of
HIV and AIDS programming has remained a big challenge since a huge amount of money
funding HIV and AIDS programs comes from international donors. Assisted partner notification
programming (Apns) has proved to be not only efficient but also effective in identifying
new testers and unknown positives. The economic and programming benefits are yet to
be quantified.
Objective: To Assess the Benefits of Assisted Partner Notification Programming in
the Fight of HIV and AIDS in the Informal Settlements of Nairobi Kenya.
Method: In 2022 U-Tena Youth Organization partnered with AHF Kenya to implement the
Imarisha Maisha project that was implemented in the informal settlements of Nairobi
Kenya. This is a one-year renewable project. Within the Rapid Testing Programme and
Rapid result initiatives, assisted partner notification service (aPNS) approaches
were used to reach and serve clients. HIV Testing Service providers were placed in
six health care facilities where they targeted general outpatients and Antenatal care,
clients.
Results: By the end of 2022 U-Tena achieved the following: Tested 17079 clients, identified
400 (2.34%) seropositive clients, and linked 395 (99%) reactive clients to treatment
and care. In this project a total of 183 clients were followed through assisted partner
notification of which 170 of them were reactive (93%) and were all successfully linked
to care and treatment.
Conclusions: Working with the Ministry of Health ensures proper coordination and sustainability,
evidence-based intervention that has robust monitoring, evaluation, and learning framework
gives a clear picture of the efficiency and effectiveness of HIV programming. In quest
to carry out targeted testing and identification on new positives, the Assisted Partner
Notification approach boosts HIV prevention and treatment efforts. In the era of limited
resources, an assisted partner notification system forms an evidence-based (targeted)
intervention in the fight of HIV programming and should be embraced within the ethics
of fighting HIV and AIDS. When offered to newly diagnosed HIV reactive client, aPNS,
which involves locating and recommending HIV testing to partners of HIV-reactive clients
in an ethically safe environment is an effective treatment option in a limited-resourced
health care system.
Keywords: aPNS, Targeted Testing, New positives, HIV and AIDS, Informal Settlements
