Antiretroviral treatment roll-out in a resource-constrained setting: capitalizing on nursing resources in Botswana.

Problem: As programmes to deliver antiretroviral therapy (ART) are implemented in resource-constrained settings, the problem becomes not how these programmes are going to be financed but who will be responsible for delivering and sustaining them.

Approach: Physician-led models of HIV treatment and care that have evolved in industrialized countries are not replicable in settings with a high prevalence of HIV infection and limited access to medical staff. Therefore, models of care need to make better use of available human resources.

Nurse prescribing in low-resource settings: professional considerations.

Aim: This paper reviews the professional issues relating to nurse prescribing in low-resource countries.

Background: In order to meet community healthcare need, nurses in low-resource settings often perform roles such as prescribing medication, for which they may not have had adequate training, often in the absence of supervision, legislation and regulation. In general, however, there is a paucity of published evidence relating to nurse prescribing in low-resource settings.