Major Meeting Highlights
From, UNICEF Newsletter: For every child, ending AIDS (November 2019)
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UNICEF joined more than 350 stakeholders working with adolescents affected by and living with HIV at the 3rd International Workshop on HIV and Adolescence on 2–4 October 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya. The workshop, convened by Virology Education, was co-chaired by Alice Armstrong from UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) and Dr. Linda-Gail Bekker of the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre.
The abstract-driven event focused on service delivery approaches, youth leadership and engagement, biomedical interventions, communications and behaviour change, psychosocial support, structural and systematic barriers encountered in delivering these services and ways to mitigate these barriers. Download the abstract book and slides.
“Change is happening and we are leading the way,” youth advocate Kossy Umeh from Y+ Nigeria noted on Day 1 of the workshop, highlighting young leaders who are developing programmes, driving policy, ensuring accountability and advocating for the inclusion of sexual and reproductive health (SRH), gender equality and mental well-being.
On Day 2, the speakers not only presented work on biomedical innovations such as long-acting antiretrovirals, but also discussed a breadth of service delivery approaches to improve prevention, testing, treatment and care among adolescents and young people. A presentation from UNICEF South Africa, the South African Department of Health’s PMTCT unit and mothers2mothers highlighted a project providing peer support to adolescent and young mothers. The programme is being scaled up after the pilot initiative and 31 young mentor mothers have been trained so far (see slides). The YMM Initiative in Zimbabwe (featured above) was highlighted in a presentation by Africaid Zvandiri in partnership with the Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care and UNICEF (see slides).
Needs and considerations for scaling up promising programmes were key components of the conversation on Day 3, when the workshop closed with recommendations from a youth-led reference group and comments from the workshop co-chairs. Attendees and organizers were called upon to continue to ensure platforms for youth researchers, meaningfully engage young key populations and prioritize young people in scientific settings with youth-appropriate language and leadership.
Abstracts with UNICEF partnership included:
Ayisi Addo S, et al. ‘Preliminary impact of an Integrated Maternal and Child Health Record Book on early infant diagnosis coverage for HIV exposed infants in the Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana’.
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Ashikoto S, et al. ‘Namibia Experience and Lessons Learned on the Teen Club Service Delivery Model’.
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Conway M, et al. ‘The Development and Initial Implementation of a National Framework of Standardized Psychosocial Support for All Children and Adolescents Living with HIV in Kazakhstan’.
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Nchephe M, et al. ‘Let Youth Lead: Adolescent participation through social accountability to improve the quality of health services’.
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Juma, R., ‘You’ve Got Power! Adolescent and Young Self-Advocates on County Health Processes’.
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Zuma, H., et al, ‘Synergizing the Voices of Adolescents and Young People: A case of Youth Advisory Council, Mombasa County’.
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Ajiboye, A., ‘#ISABIHIV improved uptake of HIV services in Kaduna state, Nigeria’.
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Ferguson, J., ‘Multi-sectoral Guidelines to Facilitate Adolescents’ Access to Services in Eswatini’.
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Ogoma, E., ‘A Triad Model to Improve Adolescent Adherence to ART in Kenya, Youth Zone, Coast General Hospital; Mombasa County’.
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Find more information in the abstract book.