Integration for Impact Conference

September 12-14, 2012 in Nairobi Kenya

There is growing interest within the global health community in the potential public health impact of integrating different health services into a single delivery setting.  Integrating programs for HIV, family planning (FP), and maternal, neonatal, and child health (MNCH) would address patients’ multiple needs at once, and may enhance program effectiveness and efficiency.

Integration for Impact, an international conference devoted to this topic, aims to bring together key stakeholders from sub-Saharan countries with a high burden of HIV, unmet need for FP, and high child and maternal morbidity/mortality to:

  • Present the latest research findings on the impact of integrating HIV and reproductive health services including: family planning, maternal and child health, and STI prevention and cervical cancer screening;
  • Identify research priorities for expanding the evidence base on integration; and
  • Lay out strategies for strengthening integration policies and translating research into practice.

Attendees will include representatives from ministries of health, non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, as well as people living with HIV/AIDS, policy experts, donor organizations, and members of the media.

Although HIV/AIDS prevention and care programs are expanding in sub-Saharan Africa, in most settings these services are offered in isolation from MNCH services and FP services. Program managers and policymakers have begun to recognize the missed opportunities and inefficiencies created by these vertical “siloed” approaches.  Experiences in some sub-Saharan African settings suggest that integrating reproductive health and HIV services may improve access to contraception for HIV-infected individuals, increase uptake of prevention of mother-to-child transmission services and cervical cancer screening, and lead to earlier initiation and sustained use of anti-retroviral therapy.

Despite lack of rigorous evidence, the integration of MNCH/FP/HIV services has advanced with support from governments, international organizations, and donors. Integration for Impact will provide a picture of the current status of MNCH/FP/HIV integration in sub-Saharan Africa, helping policymakers, program implementers, donors, and researchers to understand the current developments, practices, and latest evidence on integration.

 

 

 

 

“When the patients come to the clinic all these services can be given there instead of seeing the patient partially and then referring the patient for family planning services in the next clinic.” (Clinic Provider)

 

 

 

“[The HIV clinic] is the place where I come and I get all the services without announcing my problem elsewhere. I meet my need and I leave for home.” (Female Client, 29 years)

New Evidence from Rigorous Trials

The timing of the conference corresponds with the planned dissemination date for two cluster randomized-controlled trials conducted in Kenya: the integration of FP into HIV care and treatment, and the integration of HIV services into the MCH clinic. The conference will discuss the implications of these two trials, and of other new research findings.