Central Delhi DAPCU – Response to Question of the Month February 2012 - Facilitating Pre ART Registration

This post was in response to the February 2012 theme

Strategies which DAPCU-Central has used in our district to ensure people diagnosed HIV positive from ICTCs reach the ART Centre for Pre - ART registration are as follows

Supporting counselors in ensuring quality counselling

1. Importance of continuity of medication is stressed on by counselors
2. Assessment tests in ICTC Review Meetings on different topics eg. Pre-test & Post-test counselling etc.
3. Taking feedbacks in ICTC Review Meeting on today’s learning and suggestions for next meetings. 

Coordination between ICTC and ART

1. Improving rapport between ICTC / PPTCT counsellors and Counsellor of ART centres.
2. Better sharing of responsibilities through handing and taking over of Clients in person by the counsellor of both the ends. (Client is accompanied by counsellor to ART –Centre for Pre ART registration)

Coordination with other facilities and programmes

1. HIV-TB Co-ordination. For example detected positive in Regarpura ICTC (referred in from RNTCP ) who was not getting himself registered with ART, had been handled by counsellor ICTC and was prepared for being registered in the RML hospital with the help of Counsellors RML(ICTC & ART) and STS of concerned DOT centres.  
2. Joint Review of ICTC counsellor with staff of ART, CCC, TI- NGOs.
3. Discussion in Review meetings. Example: A dicussion on methods to ensure address verification of clients undergoing Pre ART registration took place in the review meeting.  The DPM, DAPCU-Central facilitated discussions and few of these were implemented 

Follow up of positive individuals 

1. The TI community members who were found positive are followed up through the TI team
2. Joint visit with ICTC counselors when required