How SHIELD helped drive HIV data mgt, service delivery – Experts

Experts have said the Strengthening HIV Field Epidemiology, Infectious Disease Surveillance and Laboratory Diagnostics (SHIELD) programme has improved the quality of HIV service delivery. This. They said was by establishing standardised processes for data quality improvement, and promoting the use of data for evidenced-based decision making and programme evaluation. They stated this yesterday during the […]

Experts have said the Strengthening HIV Field Epidemiology, Infectious Disease Surveillance and Laboratory Diagnostics (SHIELD) programme has improved the quality of HIV service delivery.

This. They said was by establishing standardised processes for data quality improvement, and promoting the use of data for evidenced-based decision making and programme evaluation.

They stated this yesterday during the close out ceremony of the project in Abuja. SHIELD was awarded to the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC).

It worked closely with the federal government through the National AIDS and STD Control Programme (NASCP), National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and Federal Ministry of Health’s  Department of Planning Research and Statistics (DPRS).

 The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehnaire, said it contributed to the significant achievements made in the country’s HIV response in the last five years.

Represented by the National Coordinator of the National AIDS, STI and Hepatitis Control Programme (NASCP) of the Federal Ministry of Health , Dr Akudo Ikpeazu, he said it has been instrumental to identifying significant number of new HIV cases and improvement in the collection and utilization of HIV data through the  National Data Repository (NDR).

The NDR serves as a warehouse for health data and information which can be used for planning and resource allocation to meet the needs of PLHIV in Nigeria.

 As of September 2021, over five million patients records from over 3,000 treatment facilities are available on the NDR.

“Since inception, the NDR has contributed to providing accurate , up to date and complete information on patient care in facilities, among others.

“The NDR enables  quick and ready access to data for  more coordinated and efficient approach to the overall management of HIV,” he said.

The Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Dr Gambo Aliyu, said Nigeria is on track to achieving the UNAIDS 95-95-95 goals which is critical to ending AIDS by 2030.

He said this is inspite of the fact that it couldn’t meet the 90-90-90 target last year.

The 95-95-95 treatment target means  95 per cent of people living with HIV knowing their HIV status; 95 per cent of people who know their status are on treatment; and 95 per cent of people on treatment with suppressed viral loads.

The Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, in his presentation on the COVID-19 Sero-prevalence survey said the results showed high level of COVID-19 infection among males and those in urban settings.