Rapid Adaptation of HIV Treatment Programs in Response to COVID-19 - Namibia, 2020

• Published in: MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report 2020-10, Vol.69 (42), p.1549-1551
• Main Authors: Hong, Steven Y, Ashipala, Laimi S N, Bikinesi, Leonard, Hamunime, Ndapewa, Kamangu, Jacques W N, Boylan, Ashley, Sithole, Edwin, Pietersen, Ismelda C, Mutandi, Gram, McLean, Catherine, Dziuban, Eric J
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abbreviations; Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; Adaptation; Adolescents; AIDS; AIDS treatment; Anti-HIV Agents - therapeutic use; Antiretroviral agents; Antiretroviral therapy; Breast feeding; Cellular telephones; Cervical cancer; Cervix; Children; Clients; Community Health Services - organization & administration; Constraining; Coordination; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronavirus Infections - prevention & control; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Disease control; Disease transmission; Dispensing; Drug therapy; Emergency preparedness; Epidemics; Exposure; Health care; Health care facilities; Health risks; HIV; HIV Infections - drug therapy; Hospital facilities; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Immigration; Infants; Infections; Medical personnel; Morbidity; Namibia - epidemiology; Notes from the Field; Occupational exposure; Outbreaks; Overcrowding; Pandemics; Pandemics - prevention & control; Patients; Personal protective equipment; Physical training; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Pneumonia, Viral - prevention & control; Police; Pregnancy; Program Development; Protective equipment; Public health; Ribonucleic acid; Risk; RNA; Self testing; Sexually transmitted diseases; Signs and symptoms; Social services; STD; Teenagers; Telephone calls; Therapy; Tracing; Travel restrictions; Tuberculosis; Viral diseases; Viruses
• ISSN: 0149-2195; 1545-861X
• DOI: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6942a6

Namibia is an upper-middle income country in southern Africa, with a population of approximately 2.5 million (1). On March 13, 2020, the first two cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Namibia were identified among recently arrived international travelers. On March 17, Namibia's president declared a state of emergency, which introduced measures such as closing of all international borders, enactment of regional travel restrictions, closing of schools, suspension of gatherings, and implementation of physical distancing measures across the country. As of October 19, 2020, Namibia had reported 12,326 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases and 131 COVID-19-associated deaths. CDC, through its Namibia country office, as part of ongoing assistance from the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) provided technical assistance to the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) for rapid coordination of the national human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) treatment program with the national COVID-19 response.