AIDSFree adapted the successful proactive mother-baby pair- follow-up approach implemented in Eswatini to identify, map, and link pregnant women and mother-baby pairs to care at health facilities in two counties in Kenya. Through the Tembelea program, AIDSFree trained community health volunteers (CHVs) to visit households in their community and map all pregnant women and postnatal mothers with infants under two years for antenatal care and skilled delivery services for postnatal care, and immunization/early infant diagnosis services. Early identification of pregnant women and establishment of a structured, continuous follow-up process for their children is key to ensuring access to all the necessary services for the mother-baby pair.
Results from this short-term implementation were promising. Recommendations for scale-up include continuing to support existing CHVs in conducting proactive follow-up of mother-baby pairs and identifying new and defaulted clients. The Ministry of Health and HIV/MNCH partners should be encouraged to prioritize supportive supervision and facility-CHV coordination meetings as keys to successful community-facility linkages and client referral. Additional facility-level support, including HIV testing for infants at immunization visits, is also recommended to ensure appropriate services are provided at all entry points.
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