Category Archives: Health Systems
Do digital innovations for HIV and sexually transmitted infections work? Results from a systematic review (1996–2017)
OBJECTIVE: Digital innovations with internet/mobile phones offer a potential cost-saving solution for overburdened health systems with high service delivery costs to improve efficiency of HIV/STI (sexually transmitted infections) control initiatives....
A systematic review of emergency department based HIV testing and linkage to care initiatives in low resource settings
INTRODUCTION: Only 45% of people currently living with HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa are aware of their HIV status. Unmet testing needs may be addressed by utilizing the Emergency Department...
Bibliometric trends of health economic evaluation in Sub-Saharan Africa
BACKGROUND: Collaboration between Sub-Saharan African researchers is important for the generation and transfer of health technology assessment (HTA) evidence, in order to support priority-setting in health. The objective of this...
Measures and metrics for feasibility of proof-of-concept studies with human immunodeficiency virus rapid point-of-care technologies: The evidence and the framework
Objective: Pilot (feasibility) studies form a vast majority of diagnostic studies with point-of-care technologies but often lack use of clear measures/metrics and a consistent framework for reporting and evaluation. To...
A systematic review of health care provider-perceived barriers and facilitators to routine HIV testing in primary care settings in the Southeastern United States
Despite efforts to improve HIV screening and testing, many primary care settings do not follow established guidelines. The purpose of our systematic review was to describe health care providers’ perceived...
Ranking 93 health interventions for low- and middle-income countries by cost-effectiveness
BACKGROUND: Cost-effectiveness rankings of health interventions are useful inputs for national healthcare planning and budgeting. Previous comprehensive rankings for low- and middle- income countries were undertaken in 2005 and 2006,...
Evidence on the cost-effectiveness of lifelong antiretroviral therapy for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV: Implications for resource-limited countries in sub-Saharan Africa
INTRODUCTION: The 2016 World Health Organization (WHO) consolidated guideline recommends lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART) for all HIV-infected pregnant and breastfeeding women for preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT). Ambiguity remains about...
A historical review of HIV prevention and care initiatives in British Columbia, Canada: 1996-2015
INTRODUCTION: British Columbia has made significant progress in the treatment and prevention of HIV since 1996, when Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) became available. However, we currently lack a historical...
To err is human, to correct is public health: A systematic review examining poor quality testing and misdiagnosis of HIV status
INTRODUCTION: In accordance with global testing and treatment targets, many countries are seeking ways to reach the “90-90-90” goals, starting with diagnosing 90% of all people with HIV. Quality HIV...
Shifting tasks from pharmacy to non-pharmacy personnel for providing antiretroviral therapy to people living with HIV: A systematic review and meta-analysis
OBJECTIVES: Lay people or non-pharmacy health workers with training could dispense antiretroviral therapy (ART) in resource-constrained countries, freeing up time for pharmacists to focus on more technical tasks. We assessed...
