Children and AIDS
The context South Africa has an exceptionally severe epidemic of HIV and AIDS. One in six adults and children infected with HIV globally lives in South Africa. Close to half of the estimated three million orphans in the country have lost their parents to HIV/AIDS-related diseases. AIDS is the leading cause of death in children and women. A third of all deaths of children under the age of five is caused by HIV/AIDS-related illnesses. Close to 30 per cent of pregnant women attending antenatal care are HIV-positive. Most children acquire HIV from their mothers during pregnancy, birth or through breastfeeding, and, without care and treatment, most of these babies will die in the first two years of life. Many die at home before they have been properly diagnosed and treated. South Africa has recently updated international policies to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV but implementing these is a challenge. What UNICEF is doing The Department of Health, UNICEF and other partners are working on a comprehensive approach to protecting children from HIV and prolonging their lives. This means providing a complete package of services in the community, linked to health clinics. The package includes HIV testing for pregnant women, antiretroviral drugs to reduce mother-to-child transmission, early diagnosis of HIV infection in babies, and early treatment, counselling and support for women and children who are infected.
What has been achieved? Plans, systems and standards need to be in place to ensure the success of programmes that protect children from HIV and keep mothers alive. UNICEF helped the Department of Health to develop a national acceleration plan to bring prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission services to the country’s 18 districts most affected by the AIDS pandemic. New guidelines for preventing mother-to-child transmission were also released, which will make services more effective. A new strategy to save the lives of babies born to HIV-positive mothers will be to test them at their six-week immunisation visit. If found to be HIV-positive, these children will be promptly started on treatment. Training professional nurses in community-based health clinics to collect blood for infant HIV testing will be key. Outreach teams of doctors will provide antiretroviral medication and monitor progress. The Department of Health is introducing a new preventative drug regime for breastfed babies exposed to HIV, which could also save thousands from becoming infected, while still allowing them to benefit from breastfeeding. UNICEF is supporting the Department of Health to implement a model of long-term HIV care and treatment for women and children. By training nurses in community-based health clinics and using outreach teams from hospitals and antiretroviral therapy centres to provide supervision and mentoring, the model aims to bring services closer to home and capture greater numbers of eligible HIV-infected pregnant women and children. By November 2009, the Health Information Evaluation and Research Cluster of the Department of Health reported that about 920 000 adults are receiving ART, and only 30 per cent of children estimated to be in need of ART are receiving ART. An estimated 29 per cent of exposed children are receiving cotrimoxazole. The PMTCT coverage was 74 per cent in 2008. Read more
This Standard Operating Procedure file is designed to assist healthcare workers in taking blood from infants for the HIV DNA PCR test. This test is routine care for babies born to HIV-positive mothers. The PCR test ensures early diagnosis of HIV infection which improves the survival and quality of life of these babies. [PDF] (PDF documents require Acrobat Reader to view.)
June 2009 - A literature review on social mobilization and communication in support of prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV. Prepared as part of a research project in support of the South African ‘Operational Plan for Accelerating PMTCT Services’ with the support of UNICEF. The preparation of this literature review was supported by funding and technical assistance from UNICEF. [PDF] (PDF documents require Acrobat Reader to view.)
This report, which is the second one based on the third population-based HIV seroprevalence survey conducted in 2008 by the consortium led by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), focuses on health of children 0–18 years of age. Download the report [PDF]
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Did you know? 9 in 10 pregnant women living with HIV receive antiretrovirals to prevent transmission of HIV to their babies. UNICEF launches campaign on prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV Advertisements promote the gift of life and help dispel stigma and discrimination. Download advertisements [pdf]:
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