| dc.description.abstract | Introduction: HIV and AIDS continues to be a major public health challenge for Zambia, which has the highest HIV prevalence rate of 13.1% in sub-Saharan Africa. Although individuals living with HIV/AIDS in Zambia have increased access to antiretroviral treatment (ART), not all patients who are initiated on antiretroviral treatment remain in care; with some patients being lost at different points in the continuum of care. The current study aimed to explore the factors affecting retention in care among patients receiving antiretroviral treatment at three primary health facilities in the Kabwe district in Zambia. Methodology: An exploratory qualitative study design was used to explore the patient, health systems and socio-economic factors that underlie retention on ART in three purposefully selected primary health care facilities in Kabwe district. Data was collected through in-depth interviews with 45 ART patients and three focus group discussions with 20 health care providers. The content of the transcribed interviews was analyzed thematically. Findings: The overall retention rate of the ART sites was found to be 65%. The main patient factors that influenced retention in care were side effects of antiretroviral drugs and weight increase as a sign of good health. The social related factors that influenced patient retention in care were stigma and non-disclosure of HIV status, faith healing, use of herbal remedies and alcohol use. The health system factors that contributed to poor retention of patients in care were long waiting times due to staff shortage, high patient load, travel distance to ART centers and transportation cost. Other health system factors reported by participants included shortage of third line ARV drugs and inadequate space in ART clinic. Finally, food shortage and mobility of patients due to employment were some of the identified economic factors that influenced patient retention in care. Conclusions: A large proportion of adult patients initiating ART in Zambia are poorly retained in care because of patient, health system, social and economic factors. In order to improve retention, more nurses and clinical officers should be trained in ART management to improve skills and address staff shortages. It would also be useful for Zambia to introduce community drug distribution points for delivering ARV refills to reduce the workload on the existing ART sites and reduce on the distances that patients have to travel to ART centers. Additionally, efforts should also be made to improve ART care by extending ART clinic days to include all the days of the week except Sundays. | en_US |
