Abstract
Purpose: Little is known about acceptance of provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling (PICT) as an intervention for prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa including Ethiopia. This study aimed at assessing the utilization and acceptance rate of PICT as an intervention for PMTCT among pregnant women attending University of Gondar referral and teaching hospital (UoGRTH), Ethiopia.Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 364 pregnant women attending antenatal care clinic at UoGRTH through an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Frequencies, means, and percentages were used to report different variables. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to come up with factors associated with acceptance of PICT services.Results: Out of 364 respondents, 298 330 (81.7%) of them accepted provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling. Rural residency (AOR: 364, 95% CI: 2.17–6.34), higher educational status (AOR: 3.15, 95% CI: 1.86–6.82), planning of HIV test disclosure to male partners (AOR: 7.81, 95% CI: 3.17–13.14), and a higher average monthly income (AOR: 4.01, 95% CI: 2.32–7.61) were found to be strong predictors of acceptance of provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling.Conclusions: The present study revealed a higher rate of acceptance of PICT among pregnant women. Enhancing access to and consistent use of antenatal care service among pregnant women and encouraging the active involvement of male partners are recommended to further increase the uptake of provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling.
Highlights
Children and adolescents have been given a higher priority for HIV preventive and treatment services owing to a higher prevalence of undiagnosed HIV infection in these population compared to adults [1]
The relatively higher acceptance rate in our study could be partially explained by the fact that most pregnant women consider that Provider-initiated HIV counseling and testing (PICT) as a standard care for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) and due to the high availability and affordability of comprehensive HIV/AIDS care in the past couple of years through community sensitization and enhancing the accessibility of on-site rapid HIV testing
The present study revealed a higher level of utilization of PICT among pregnant women attending antenatal care clinic at University of Gondar referral and teaching hospital, Ethiopia
Summary
Children and adolescents have been given a higher priority for HIV preventive and treatment services owing to a higher prevalence of undiagnosed HIV infection in these population compared to adults [1]. Mother-to-child transmission of HIV (MTCT) represents one of the biggest public health problem and continues to account for a considerable percentage of new cases of HIV infections among Ethiopian children [2]. The national prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) guideline of Ethiopia is based on the fourpronged approaches and promotes the integration of PMTCT and HIV counseling and testing services within the family planning and reproductive health services [7]. Provider-initiated HIV counseling and testing (PICT) services are routinely provided freely to all pregnant women attending antenatal and post-natal services. In 2011, the proportion of pregnant women counseled and tested for MTCT in Ethiopia was 33.4%, and only 9.3% of infants born to HIV positive mothers received ARV prophylaxis for PMTCT [8]. Less frequent ANC attendance and follow up, a higher rate of home delivery and lost from follow up are some of the major reasons [9,10,11,12,13]
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