TITLE:
Quality of PMTCT Services in Gebretsadiq Shawo Memorial Hospital, Kafa Zone, South West Ethiopia: A Descriptive Study
AUTHORS:
Negalign Berhanu Bayou, Yohannes Ejigu Tsehay
KEYWORDS:
Quality, PMTCT, Kafa, Ethiopia
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.2 No.5,
May
8,
2015
ABSTRACT: Background:
Worldwide, an estimated 2.3 million children under the age of 15 are HIV
positive. The main source of HIV infection in children is vertical transmission
of HIV from mother-to-child during pregnancy, labor and delivery, or
breastfeeding. Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV has been expanded
in accelerated fashion throughout Ethiopia with all public hospitals and health
centers providing the services. However, published studies on the services’ provision in the country are
generally limited. If at all, they did
not comprehensively examine quality
of the services. Objective: The study aimed to assess the quality of Prevention
of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV services in Gebretsadiq Shawo Memorial
Hospital in Kafa Zone, Southwest Ethiopia. Methods: Facility based
cross-sectional study involving both quantitative and qualitative methods was
conducted in September 2012. A total of 311 pregnant mothers were interviewed
and a one year (2011) record of PMTCT clients was reviewed and service
provision processes were observed for 10 counseling sessions. Donabedian’s
Structure-Process-Outcome model was used to conceptualize the study. Data were
analyzed using SPSS for windows version 17 software. Descriptive statistics
were computed to summarize the findings. Results: Almost all of the minimum required
resources such as test kits, prophylactic drugs and other supplies were
available in the hospital; counselors followed the national guideline in
providing HIV counseling and testing services; and most (90%) of clients were
satisfied or very satisfied by the PMTCT services they received. However, from
858 pregnant mothers who visited the ANC clinic in 2011, only 330(38.5%) were offered
HIV pretest counseling, while 281 (33%) were tested. Conclusion: Although
clients’ satisfaction by PMTCT service is very high, considerable proportion of
pregnant mothers who utilize ANC services are not offered HIV counseling and
testing services. Therefore, appropriate quality improvement interventions
against the missed opportunities are highly recommended.