Bibliographic Info
GuidelineUpdated recommendations on service delivery for the treatment and care of people living with HIV
Year of Publication2021
Issuing InstitutionWHO
Recommendation
Status
Updated
Recommended in favor
Conditional
Certainty of evidence
Very low
Sexual and reproductive health services, including contraception, may be integrated within HIV services
Notes and Remarks
- 1.A focus on improving investment in the overall health system will be important to support the integration of sexual and reproductive health services, including contraception and HIV services. Laws and policy barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health services, including for adolescents, need to be addressed. Although this applies to any integration effort, it is especially important since sexual and reproductive health programmes have historically been implemented as established vertical programmes within health systems. WHO strongly recommends that care for women experiencing intimate partner violence and sexual assault, as much as possible, be integrated into existing health services rather than being a stand-alone service
- 2.Training on human sexuality may facilitate greater understanding of sexually diverse communities, particularly those identifying as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, questioning or intersex (LGBTQI), as well as adolescents and young people seeking accurate sexual and reproductive health and rights (sexual and reproductive health and rights) information and services.
- 3.Since an increasing proportion of people living with HIV are receiving their HIV treatment through a differentiated service delivery model with extended ART refills and less frequent clinical visits, aligning the provision of sexual and reproductive health services, including contraception commodities – WHO recommends providing one year of oral contraception and supports community delivery and self-management – with differentiated service delivery for HIV treatment models should be considered
- 4.Careful planning and coordination are important for both programme management and service delivery, including establishing integrated data systems and providing consistent cross-training of health-care providers. Political will, significant coordination, collaboration and integration across disease programmes are important