Center Offers Youth-Friendly Care for Teens living with HIV
Adolescents and youth living with HIV (AYLHIV) are an uniquely vulnerable population facing challenges around adherence, disclosure of HIV status and stigma. Since 2016, the MTRH Rafiki Center of Excellence in Adolescent Health has catered to these unique needs of teens with HIV providing treatment, nutritional support, peer support groups, educational sessions and more.
The Rafiki Center strives to strengthen the meaningful involvement of adolescents and young people in their HIV care and treatment programs.
The Center strives to strengthen the meaningful involvement of adolescents and young people in their HIV care and treatment programs. In April, the Rafiki (Swahili for “friend”) Center welcomed 80 adolescents from the pediatric clinic in a colorful transition ceremony. The transition is a process of graduating adolescents (about the age of 15) who have had disclosure of their HIV status from the pediatric clinic to the adolescent clinic. The transition was not only an introduction to the adolescents’ module, but a wholesome and educational event. The teens were given nuggets of wisdom on change, school, drug adherence, discipline and mental health counseling.
The transition ceremony welcomes adolescents living with HIV.
An estimated 133,455 adolescents are living with HIV in Kenya with 18,004 new infections and 2,797 deaths among adolescents (10-19) years annually. Access to and uptake of HIV testing and counseling (HTS) by adolescents is significantly lower than by adults, and antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage rates are lower for adolescents than for any other age group of persons living with HIV, signaling a need for targeted adolescent programs. The USAID AMPATH Uzima supported youth center provides an adolescent-friendly environment for adolescents living with HIV to receive care and support. Rafiki addresses the needs of this vulnerable population with customized adolescent-specific services and adolescent-friendly services including engaging peer champions who help the teens navigate through care and treatment at this critical stage.
The Rafiki Clinic also promotes awareness about HIV prevention.
In addition, the adolescents at Rafiki learn life skills like tailoring and farming and enjoy social activities like salsa dancing, playing chess, darts, and table tennis. The teenagers also get psycho-social support that helps them cope with the stigma and challenges of living with HIV.
Further, the clinic also generates awareness about HIV prevention and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) among adolescents by conducting adolescent HIV testing campaigns at schools, adolescent events and in communities. In the past few months, when teenagers had a long two-month break from school, the facility engaged the teens receiving care at the facility and other young people in Trans Nzoia county in a chess and table tennis tournament. The tournament served as a platform for the youth to learn, get tested for HIV, develop a positive self-image, and have positive use of their time, energy and talents.
Currently, the USAID-funded care program at the MTRH Rafiki Center supports 779 adolescents to access care and treatment services. Approximately 100 are teenagers living on the streets. The viral suppression for the AYLHIVs receiving care is 95 percent - on par with the UNAIDS 2030 targets.