Background and Objectives: With the evolution of mobile technology, the cell phone has become a medium of communication for all manner of diseases. So far no study has been done in India to assess the effectiveness of...Background and Objectives: With the evolution of mobile technology, the cell phone has become a medium of communication for all manner of diseases. So far no study has been done in India to assess the effectiveness of an AIDS Helpline and that too as a stand-alone service. The objective of this study was to determine if the callers to the HIV/AIDS Helpline found it to be an effective tool of communication. Methods: All the calls received on ASHA Foundation’s HIV/AIDS manual helpline during the period of three years from April 2009 to March 2012, were included in this study. At the end of each call, the counselor asked the caller if he found the call useful and if so why he found it useful. If the caller did not find the call useful he also needed to say why he did not find it useful. Details of each call were recorded and entered on MS excel worksheet and finally analyzed using the SPSS software package. Results: The Helpline received 4692 calls during this period of which?90.9 % calls were from males and 9.1% calls were from females. Of the 4692 calls, 38.72% were from repeat callers. Of the 2875 first time callers, 85.07% responded and said that they found the helpline useful. Responses could not be elicited from the remaining 17% as the calls were disconnected before the question could be asked. Conclusions: Callers to the helpline were mostly male;38.7% called again. All the callers who responded said that they found the helpline useful. Thus it is an effective tool of communication and could to be used to complement advanced care in HIV/AIDS.展开更多
PLHIV have decreased economic productivity both due to direct and indirect causes. Data from developed countries have shown that at the societal level, high costs ART are offset by increased productivity. We hypothesi...PLHIV have decreased economic productivity both due to direct and indirect causes. Data from developed countries have shown that at the societal level, high costs ART are offset by increased productivity. We hypothesized that post-ART the SES would improve regardless of the baseline SES and will be sustained over time. Our objective was to perform a comprehensive SES evaluation pre/post ART initiation using an ambispective cohort study design. We used Indian household-specific SES validated tool, with score of 76 being affluent, along with clinical, ART adherence data at median of 6 and 18 months post ART, and compared using paired t-tests. Among 140 persons started on ART, with a median follow up of 22 months, 118 had Pre-ART SES data, of these: 57% were women;median age was 38 years;67% were married;89 (78%) had heterosexual sex as HIV risk;40 (34%) had major OI and/or TB at presentation. Reported self-occupation was: skilled labourers 41 (35%);12 (10%) unskilled labourers;27 (23%) housewives;26 (22%) pro-fessionals/blue collar job;1 student, 10 unemployed. The median pre-post ART CD4 cell counts were: 187 and 454 cells/cumm (P < 0.01);median body weight pre-post ART was 54 and 57 kg (P < 0.01);97% of the participants were 100% adherent. The mean Pre-ART total SES score was 37.06 (+/-10.2);and Post-ART SES score 40.62 (+10.1 P < 0.001) and these results were sustained over time and remained significant even when only monthly income was considered. Our data show a significant impact of ART on SES in a sustained manner in a developing world setting, which has policy level implications.展开更多
Introduction: Lifelong Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) promotes good quality of life and health among HIV-positive men and women. However, simplified newer and effective ART has not increased retention in care, or long-...Introduction: Lifelong Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) promotes good quality of life and health among HIV-positive men and women. However, simplified newer and effective ART has not increased retention in care, or long-term ART adherence, especially among women. There are many factors that impede long-term adherence in women. This includes among other things female gender, depression, greater than once-daily dosing, longer time since HIV diagnosis, and patient beliefs. This study measures the quality of life in women whose ART durations range from one to fifteen years, using the standardized WHO Quality of Life questionnaire. Material and Methods: One hundred and fourteen women were divided into three groups based on ART duration. Group 1 had 37 women on ART for less than five years, Group 2 had 48 women on ART from 5 to 10 years and Group 3 had 29 women on ART for more than ten years. They were administered the WHO Quality of Life (QOL) questionnaire, which assesses QOL in six domains. QOL was considered poor in scores between 4 - 9.9, medium in scores of 10 - 14.9 and good in scores of 15 - 20. Results: Scores in all 3 groups were more than 85% in five domains and around 74.5% in the psychological domain. Domain mean scores were Physical 18 (CI 17.63 - 18.37), Psychological 14.9 (CI 14.55 - 15.25), Independence 18.6 (CI 18.33 - 18.87), Social relationships 17.5 (CI 17.07 - 17.93), Environmental 17.6 (CI 17.25 - 17.95), Spiritual, Religious, Personal beliefs, 17.4 (CI 16.93 - 17.87). Scores for women on long-term ART (Group 3) are not different from the other 2 groups and the p-values were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Women on long-term ART fare extremely well compared to other groups with more than 93% showing good QOL and none showing poor Quality of Health in spite of being on ART for a longer period of time than the other two groups. Despite a multitude of impeding factors, women who continue ART faithfully and consistently enjoy a good quality of health and life. Adequate preparation and a supportive health system are essential for ensuring long-term adherence, but the attitude and commitment of women are also critical.展开更多
文摘Background and Objectives: With the evolution of mobile technology, the cell phone has become a medium of communication for all manner of diseases. So far no study has been done in India to assess the effectiveness of an AIDS Helpline and that too as a stand-alone service. The objective of this study was to determine if the callers to the HIV/AIDS Helpline found it to be an effective tool of communication. Methods: All the calls received on ASHA Foundation’s HIV/AIDS manual helpline during the period of three years from April 2009 to March 2012, were included in this study. At the end of each call, the counselor asked the caller if he found the call useful and if so why he found it useful. If the caller did not find the call useful he also needed to say why he did not find it useful. Details of each call were recorded and entered on MS excel worksheet and finally analyzed using the SPSS software package. Results: The Helpline received 4692 calls during this period of which?90.9 % calls were from males and 9.1% calls were from females. Of the 4692 calls, 38.72% were from repeat callers. Of the 2875 first time callers, 85.07% responded and said that they found the helpline useful. Responses could not be elicited from the remaining 17% as the calls were disconnected before the question could be asked. Conclusions: Callers to the helpline were mostly male;38.7% called again. All the callers who responded said that they found the helpline useful. Thus it is an effective tool of communication and could to be used to complement advanced care in HIV/AIDS.
文摘PLHIV have decreased economic productivity both due to direct and indirect causes. Data from developed countries have shown that at the societal level, high costs ART are offset by increased productivity. We hypothesized that post-ART the SES would improve regardless of the baseline SES and will be sustained over time. Our objective was to perform a comprehensive SES evaluation pre/post ART initiation using an ambispective cohort study design. We used Indian household-specific SES validated tool, with score of 76 being affluent, along with clinical, ART adherence data at median of 6 and 18 months post ART, and compared using paired t-tests. Among 140 persons started on ART, with a median follow up of 22 months, 118 had Pre-ART SES data, of these: 57% were women;median age was 38 years;67% were married;89 (78%) had heterosexual sex as HIV risk;40 (34%) had major OI and/or TB at presentation. Reported self-occupation was: skilled labourers 41 (35%);12 (10%) unskilled labourers;27 (23%) housewives;26 (22%) pro-fessionals/blue collar job;1 student, 10 unemployed. The median pre-post ART CD4 cell counts were: 187 and 454 cells/cumm (P < 0.01);median body weight pre-post ART was 54 and 57 kg (P < 0.01);97% of the participants were 100% adherent. The mean Pre-ART total SES score was 37.06 (+/-10.2);and Post-ART SES score 40.62 (+10.1 P < 0.001) and these results were sustained over time and remained significant even when only monthly income was considered. Our data show a significant impact of ART on SES in a sustained manner in a developing world setting, which has policy level implications.
文摘Introduction: Lifelong Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) promotes good quality of life and health among HIV-positive men and women. However, simplified newer and effective ART has not increased retention in care, or long-term ART adherence, especially among women. There are many factors that impede long-term adherence in women. This includes among other things female gender, depression, greater than once-daily dosing, longer time since HIV diagnosis, and patient beliefs. This study measures the quality of life in women whose ART durations range from one to fifteen years, using the standardized WHO Quality of Life questionnaire. Material and Methods: One hundred and fourteen women were divided into three groups based on ART duration. Group 1 had 37 women on ART for less than five years, Group 2 had 48 women on ART from 5 to 10 years and Group 3 had 29 women on ART for more than ten years. They were administered the WHO Quality of Life (QOL) questionnaire, which assesses QOL in six domains. QOL was considered poor in scores between 4 - 9.9, medium in scores of 10 - 14.9 and good in scores of 15 - 20. Results: Scores in all 3 groups were more than 85% in five domains and around 74.5% in the psychological domain. Domain mean scores were Physical 18 (CI 17.63 - 18.37), Psychological 14.9 (CI 14.55 - 15.25), Independence 18.6 (CI 18.33 - 18.87), Social relationships 17.5 (CI 17.07 - 17.93), Environmental 17.6 (CI 17.25 - 17.95), Spiritual, Religious, Personal beliefs, 17.4 (CI 16.93 - 17.87). Scores for women on long-term ART (Group 3) are not different from the other 2 groups and the p-values were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Women on long-term ART fare extremely well compared to other groups with more than 93% showing good QOL and none showing poor Quality of Health in spite of being on ART for a longer period of time than the other two groups. Despite a multitude of impeding factors, women who continue ART faithfully and consistently enjoy a good quality of health and life. Adequate preparation and a supportive health system are essential for ensuring long-term adherence, but the attitude and commitment of women are also critical.
