Challenges and facilitators of transition from adolescent to adult HIV care among young adults living with HIV in Moshi, Tanzania

Introduction Scale up of anti‐retroviral therapy has enabled millions of children infected with HIV to survive into adulthood, requiring transition of care to the adult HIV clinic. This transition period is often met with anxiety and reluctance. Youth who fail to transition may create strain on capa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the International AIDS Society 2019-10, Vol.22 (10), p.e25406-n/a
Main Authors: Masese, Rita V, Ramos, Julia V, Rugalabamu, Leonia, Luhanga, Severa, Shayo, Aisa M, Stewart, Kearsley A, Cunningham, Coleen K, Dow, Dorothy E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome
Adolescent
Adult
Age
AIDS
challenges
Child development
Chronic illnesses
Clinics
Data collection
facilitators
Female
Health care
HIV
HIV Infections - therapy
HIV patients
Human immunodeficiency virus
Humans
Interviews
Male
Medical care quality
Medical personnel
Medical records
Mental health
Peers
Prevention
Retrospective Studies
Social aspects
Social Stigma
Studies
Tanzania
Teenagers
Transition of care
Transition to Adult Care
Transitions
Young Adult
Young adults
Youth
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Summary:Introduction Scale up of anti‐retroviral therapy has enabled millions of children infected with HIV to survive into adulthood, requiring transition of care to the adult HIV clinic. This transition period is often met with anxiety and reluctance. Youth who fail to transition may create strain on capacity in the pediatric and adolescent clinics or result in individuals dropping out of care entirely. This study examined challenges and facilitators to the transition among young adults living with HIV in Moshi, Tanzania. Methods From April to June 2017, in‐depth interviews were conducted with young adults aged 18 to 27 years living with HIV in order to capture the spectrum of experiences from pre‐transitioning youth to those who successfully transitioned to adult care. Young adults were purposively recruited based on prior study enrollees and recommendations from healthcare staff. Recruitment occurred in the adolescent, adult HIV and the prevention of mother to child transition clinics at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre. Two separate in‐depth interviews were conducted with eligible participants. Medical records were reviewed retrospectively to collect information on HIV‐related outcomes. Results In‐depth interviews were held with 19 young adults. Participants mean age was 23.8 years (interquartile range 22.2 to 26.3 years); 53% were female. Most (78.9%) participants had been receiving anti‐retroviral therapy for nearly a decade and 72.2% were virologically suppressed (HIV RNA
ISSN:1758-2652
1758-2652
DOI:10.1002/jia2.25406