Meeting information needs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV
Every day more than 1,000 babies are infected with HIV from their mothers - before, during or after birth. The multi-billion-dollar Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has pledged to stop this tragic suffering and loss of life. “By 2015, let us end the transmission of HIV from mother to child. This is not a dream: we can do it,” says Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, The Global Fund Ambassador.
In order to realise this vision, it is fundamental that every mother and every health worker must have access to clear information on how to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Currently, mothers and health workers lack such information, leading to avoidable HIV infection, illness and death - even where antiretroviral drugs are locally available.
As with other parts of the HIFA2015 website, our purpose here is not directly to provide health information to mothers and health workers - many other websites and publications do this, with varying clarity. Our purpose is to highlight the importance of healthcare information and knowledge as a critical issue in preventing mother-to-child transmission, and to promote sharing of experience and ideas among HIFA2015 members and others on how to meet information needs in the future. Our goal: By 2015, every mother and health worker will have the information they need to ensure their babies will be born - and remain - free of HIV.
What HIFA2015/CHILD2015 members say
“It’s true majority of Community Health Workers do not have information on Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV yet we are faced with this challenge in our day to day work. I think we need to have literature to give to our clients themselves to read and understand the PMTCT program to supplement the counseling and guidance given to them during pregnancy. There is a lot that needs to be done to provide information to HIV-positive women at places within their reach in languages that they understand.”Maxensia Nakibuuka, Community Health Worker, Uganda
“I would need to have educational video on the maternal and child health domain in general, particularly on prevention of transmission of HIV/AIDS from mother to child… Can someone help me?”
Bruno Kenne, Labotel, Cameroon, HIFA2015 Forum, May 2010
“There is a dying need [for training materials on Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV] from our nurses, mostly those in the remote and rural clinics.”
Flora Asah, Centre for Rural Health, University of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa, HIFA2015 Forum, October 2008
“I believe humanity has the moral obligation to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV… The starting point is information, knowledge! My people have a saying that lack of knowledge is darker than night… mothers from this environment will do anything it takes to prevent infecting her own child with HIV, including giving up her life. Knowing the facts is a good beginning.”Shima Gyoh, College of Health Sciences, Benue State University, Nigeria, HIFA2015 Forum, May 2010
“Learning material for self study to enable nurses and doctors to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV can be accessed free here.”
Dave Woods, Perinatal Education Programme, South Africa
“WHO has developed in collaboration with UNICEF and the Academy for Educational Development (AED) a set of counselling job aids on HIV and infant feeding”
Constanza Vallenas, Paediatrician, World Health Organization, Geneva
Quotes from the literature
INFORMATION NEEDS OF MOTHERS
‘Despite routine counselling on infant feeding, HIV-positive women enrolled in PMTCT programmes are commonly left desperately uncertain about how best to feed their infants. Exposed to pressures from family and friends, many end up feeding their infants in ways that may increase the risk of HIV transmission.’
In Mali, only one-third of women were aware that HIV could be transmissed from mother to child through breastfeeding, as compared with 80% in Rwanda and Zimbabwe. Only 5% of women in Nigeria (in 2003) were aware that HIV could be transmitted through breastfeeding and that special drugs could prevent mother-to-child transmission.
‘Women, supported by the opinion of local guérisseurs, frequently define their breast problems as the product of sorcery or of a supernatural source.’
‘HIV-positive mothers who were exposed to both print and video materials were 79% less likely to infect their infants compared with mothers who had no exposure’.
Piwoz E et al 2007
INFORMATION NEEDS OF HEALTH WORKERS
“I’m really in a dilemma and confused.”
“When we don’t give them a straight answer, they doubt our knowledge, saying nurses do not know much nowadays. We look like fools.”
“I have been working for more than twenty years as a public health nurse, routinely educating mothers… I’m still using the same knowledge to educate mothers on how to feed their babies.”
Nurse-counsellors in Tanzania about HIV and infant feedingLeshabari SC et al 2007
‘The best and most feasible solution is to provide training and reference materials for health workers.’
References
Piwoz E et al. The Impact of Safer Breastfeeding Practices on Postnatal HIV-1 Transmission in Zimbabwe. American Journal of Public Health 2007;97(7):1249-1254 (restricted access)
