In a recent publication by the Pact Tanzania team working on the USAID Kizazi Kipya project, a study assessed whether the sex of the caregiver is assocaited with a positive HIV status of OVC. The study found that “OVC in Tanznia with male caregivers have a 40% higher likelihood of being HIV-positive than those with female caregivers. HIV risk assessment activities should target OVC with male caregivers, as well as OVC who have malnutrition, HIV-positive caregivers, or caregivers who do not disclose their HIV status to community volunteers. Further, younger HIV-positive OVC are more likely to live in rural areas, while older HIV-positive OVC are more likely to live in urban areas. These factors should be integrated in HIV risk assessment algorithms to enhance HIV testing yields and pediatric case-finding in the OVC population in Tanzania.”
The complete publication can be found here on BMC health Services Research.