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An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa

Background and Purpose: South Africa has the largest public antiretroviral (ART) service in the world but until recently it was unable to report from primary sources the numbers of patients on ART and was unable to monitor the program outcomes using routine data. In December 2010 the South Africa Na...

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Main Author: White, Catherine
Other Authors: Boulle, Andrew
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of Public Health and Family Medicine 2017
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access_status_str Open Access
author White, Catherine
author2 Boulle, Andrew
author_browse Boulle, Andrew
White, Catherine
author_facet Boulle, Andrew
White, Catherine
author_sort White, Catherine
collection Thesis
description Background and Purpose: South Africa has the largest public antiretroviral (ART) service in the world but until recently it was unable to report from primary sources the numbers of patients on ART and was unable to monitor the program outcomes using routine data. In December 2010 the South Africa National Department of Health adopted a standardized ART monitoring strategy referred to as the 3-Tiered Strategy. The System provides facilities with different options for cohort monitoring based on the resources and infrastructure available. The technical design of the three tiers is pragmatic and appropriate to the facility-level context. The process to implement the System was articulated through an implementation plan. The health management information system was aligned to collate data produced by the System and standard operating procedures were produced to guide system use. Methods: The study comprised a mixed-methods approach to evaluate the implementation of the system in accordance with the implementation plan. Program data were analysed, program documents were reviewed and key informants were interviewed in order to capture the complex and multidimensional nature of the countrywide implementation activities. Results: By October 2014 full implementation had been achieved in 2,139 ART facilities, of a total 3,772 facilities that report ART data. And, of facilities that had reached full implementation, 87% of facilities had submitted data. At the time of analysis, the outcome data available were representative of 55% of active patients on ART. Qualitative results elicited facility-level challenges as well as structural barriers to effective implementation. The study demonstrated that South Africa's introduction of the 3-Tiered Strategy for ART monitoring was championed by senior management in the NDOH who fostered a collaborative environment and structured implementation approach which resulted in wide-scale uptake of the recommended systems, predominantly the electronic register. Conclusions: The implementation of a basics first health information system has yielded a complete set of enrolment and retention on ART data; however there are systemic and structural barriers to the sustainable production of these and additional cohort outcome data. The study has brought attention to the organizational restructuring and the holistic health system interventions required to implement such a system.
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provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2017
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spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/22825 An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa White, Catherine Boulle, Andrew Barron, Peter Public Health Background and Purpose: South Africa has the largest public antiretroviral (ART) service in the world but until recently it was unable to report from primary sources the numbers of patients on ART and was unable to monitor the program outcomes using routine data. In December 2010 the South Africa National Department of Health adopted a standardized ART monitoring strategy referred to as the 3-Tiered Strategy. The System provides facilities with different options for cohort monitoring based on the resources and infrastructure available. The technical design of the three tiers is pragmatic and appropriate to the facility-level context. The process to implement the System was articulated through an implementation plan. The health management information system was aligned to collate data produced by the System and standard operating procedures were produced to guide system use. Methods: The study comprised a mixed-methods approach to evaluate the implementation of the system in accordance with the implementation plan. Program data were analysed, program documents were reviewed and key informants were interviewed in order to capture the complex and multidimensional nature of the countrywide implementation activities. Results: By October 2014 full implementation had been achieved in 2,139 ART facilities, of a total 3,772 facilities that report ART data. And, of facilities that had reached full implementation, 87% of facilities had submitted data. At the time of analysis, the outcome data available were representative of 55% of active patients on ART. Qualitative results elicited facility-level challenges as well as structural barriers to effective implementation. The study demonstrated that South Africa's introduction of the 3-Tiered Strategy for ART monitoring was championed by senior management in the NDOH who fostered a collaborative environment and structured implementation approach which resulted in wide-scale uptake of the recommended systems, predominantly the electronic register. Conclusions: The implementation of a basics first health information system has yielded a complete set of enrolment and retention on ART data; however there are systemic and structural barriers to the sustainable production of these and additional cohort outcome data. The study has brought attention to the organizational restructuring and the holistic health system interventions required to implement such a system. 2017-01-19T12:25:13Z 2017-01-19T12:25:13Z 2016 Master Thesis Masters MPH http://hdl.handle.net/11427/22825 eng application/pdf Department of Public Health and Family Medicine Faculty of Health Sciences University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Public Health
White, Catherine
An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
thesis_degree_str Master's
title An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
title_full An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
title_fullStr An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
title_full_unstemmed An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
title_short An evaluation of the implementation of the 3-tiered ART monitoring system in South Africa
title_sort evaluation of the implementation of the 3 tiered art monitoring system in south africa
topic Public Health
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/22825
work_keys_str_mv AT whitecatherine anevaluationoftheimplementationofthe3tieredartmonitoringsysteminsouthafrica
AT whitecatherine evaluationoftheimplementationofthe3tieredartmonitoringsysteminsouthafrica