Strengthening Clinical Services for People Living with HIV in Central America (CDC-PLHIV)

The Strengthening Clinical Services for People Living with HIV in Central America under PEPFAR five-year cooperative agreement aims to improve the clinical skills of health care providers to care and treat people living with HIV (PLHIV) in the Central America region.

URC is working to achieve this goal through a combination of initial country workshops, followed by e-learning and remote case studies, internships, and supervision.

In its first year, the project began activities with public health doctors in Guatemala with the support of partner Asociación de Salud Integral (ASI). Forty health care providers participated in a three-month on-line course on HIV Biology + diagnostics, antiretroviral therapy, adherence, managing risk and opportunistic infections/STDs. Of the 37 participants who completed the course, 24 providers passed the course with a score of 80 or above.

In Panama and Nicaragua, the project is conducting online coaching, internships, mentoring, and supervision. The project will incorporate clinical practitioners from other Central American countries, including Honduras and El Salvador.