Introduction: preventing COVID-19 infection among health workers maintains the health system capacity and reduces secondary transmission. Of 506 health workers tested for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in Harare City between December 2020 and February 2021 (second wave), 128 (25%) tested positive, affecting service delivery. We investigated factors associated with COVID-19 infection and described breakthrough infections among health workers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCOVID-19 sample management is pivotal in controlling the pandemic. Results of 28/45 (62.2%) cases identified at a high school COVID-19 outbreak in Harare's Northern district were not reported within the recommended 24 hours of notification.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Despite high antiretroviral (ARV) treatment coverage among pregnant women for prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in Zimbabwe, the MTCT rate is still high. Therefore in 2016, the country adopted World Health Organization recommendations of stratifying pregnant women into "High" or"Low" MTCT risk for subsequent provision of HIV exposed infant (HEI) with appropriate follow-up care according to risk status.
Objective: The study sought to ascertain, among pregnant women who delivered in clinics of Harare in August 2017: the extent to which high risk MTCT pregnancies were identified at time of delivery; and whether their newborns were initiated on appropriate ARV prophylaxis, cotrimoxazole prophylaxis, subjected to early HIV diagnostic testing and initiated on ARV treatment.
Background: In people living with HIV (PLHIV) who are on anti-retroviral therapy (ART), it is essential to identify persons with high blood viral loads (VLs) (≥1000 copies/ml), provide enhanced adherence counselling (EAC) for 3 months and assess for VL suppression (<1000 copies/ml).
Objective: Our study objectives were to determine the proportion who had a high viral load in those people who underwent viral load testing between 1 August 2016-31 July 2017 at Wilkins Hospital, Harare, Zimbabwe. Of those with high viral load to assess; a) the proportion who enrolled for EAC, the demographic and clinical characteristics associated with enrolment for EAC and, b) the proportion who achieved viral load suppression and demographic, clinical characteristics associated with viral load suppression.