In order to achieve optimal benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART), caregivers of children receiving ART are required to attend routine clinic visits monthly and administer medication to the child as prescribed. Yet, the level of adherence to these behaviours varies considerably in many settings. As a way to achieve optimal adherence in rural KwaZulu-Natal, caregivers are required to attend routine counselling sessions at HIV treatment clinics that are centred on imparting information, motivation, and behavioural skills related to medication administration. According to the information-motivation-behavioural skills model, information related to adherence, motivation, and behavioural skills are necessary and fundamental determinants of adherence to ART. The purpose of the study was to observe and document the content of adherence counselling sessions that caregivers attending rural clinics in KwaZulu Natal receive. We observed 25 adherence counselling sessions, which lasted on average 8.1 minutes. Counselling typically consisted of counsellors recording patient attendance, reporting CD4 count and viral load results to caregivers, emphasising dose times, and asking caregivers to name their medications and dosage amounts. Patients were seldom asked to demonstrate how they measure the medication. They were also not probed for problems regarding treatment, even when an unsuppressed VL was reported to a caregiver. This paper calls attention to the sub-optimal level of counselling provided to patients on ART and the urgent need to standardise and improve the training, support, and debriefing provided to counsellors.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4991232 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09540121.2016.1176675 | DOI Listing |
BMC Womens Health
January 2025
Department of Midwifery, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran.
Background: Given the negative impact of breast cancer and its treatment on women's self-efficacy in various areas, including sexual function, investigating and understanding ways to enhance sexual function is crucial. The current study aimed to examine the impact of sexual counseling and education based on self-efficacy theory on the sexual function of women with breast cancer.
Method: The trial was a randomized controlled trial with a parallel design, including a pre-test, post-test, and one-month follow-up.
Can J Surg
January 2025
From the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alta. (Ebrahim, Sinha, Adedipe, Ahmad, Amyotte, Yang); the Canadian Global Surgery Trainees' Association affiliated with the International Student Surgical Network - InciSioN (Ebrahim, Sinha, Adedipe, Ahmad, Amyotte, Yang, Elsewify); the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Laval University, Québec City, Que. (Elsewify); the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of Western Ontario, London, Ont. (Sachal); the Sections of Pediatric Surgery and Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alta. (Fraulin); the Departments of Clinical Neurosciences and Surgery, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alta. (Gabriel); the Department of Distributed Learning and Rural Initiatives, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alta. (Perez, Johnston)
Background: Because tertiary centres are generally situated at urban sites, it is unclear whether patients in rural areas have the same access to surgical services that patients in urban areas do. We sought to map the North American evidence landscape of how rurality affects access to medically indicated surgeries and identify system-, patient-, and provider-level barriers that preclude urban-comparable care.
Methods: We carried out a systematic search adhering to PRISMA for Scoping Reviews methodology across PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science, encompassing literature from the last 26 years (January 2023).
PLoS One
January 2025
School of Public Health and Social Sciences, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Background: Adherence to HIV treatment regimens involves the consistent and correct intake of all prescribed medications. The implementation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) program has significantly reduced mortality among adolescents living with HIV. However, adherence to ART is lower among adolescents compared to other sub-populations and even lower in sub-Saharan Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimers Dement
December 2024
German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany.
Background: Previous findings evaluating longitudinal cognition in relation to the MeDi diet are inconsistent, and few studies have examined it in relation to the presence/absence of subjective cognitive decline (SCD). Our current aims are to test whether adherence to the MeDi diet is associated with the risk of clinical progression, future cognitive decline, and atrophy over time in Alzheimer's disease (AD)-sensitive regions in cognitively unimpaired (CU) older adults with or without SCD.
Methods: This longitudinal study includes 171 controls and 228 SCD patients recruited from memory clinics in the DELCODE study.
Cureus
January 2025
Cardiology, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, Boston, USA.
Introduction The Meds to Beds (MTB) program aims to enhance medication adherence and reduce hospital readmissions by delivering prescribed medications directly to patients' bedsides before discharge. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the MTB program in reducing 90-day readmission rates in a community teaching hospital. Methods This prospective study was conducted at a 159-bed community teaching hospital in Boston, MA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!