By Purity Akoth
Adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is essential for allowing persons living with HIV to live longer, healthier lives. However, a large portion of this population has suboptimal adherence and are not virally suppressed.
Conventional interventions aimed at improving ART adherence lack portability and scalability, and improvements in adherence are not often sustained. Mobile health ART interventions offer a low-cost and accessible method of improving adherence, but many have limited functionality and do not offer comprehensive support.
Using Mobile Technology to Overcome Barriers to HIV Medication Adherence
In bid to improve drug intake and discipline among HIV/AIDS patients, LakeHub in partnership with New Nexus and Help Heal Foundation have leveraged on technology in health to design an app that reminds patients to take their medication.
The Adherence App solves inconsistency in taking medication among the aged, lack of prioritization for appointments by clients, peer discrimination among the youth and to empower hospital staff & Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) to support clients on their medication intake. The app sets a reminder for patients to take their medication and it Links the healthcare provider with the patient.
The combination of the Adherence App and face-to-face adherence intervention and interactive health coaching approach, will offer sufficient support in a manner that is sensitive to resource limitations that are often found in HIV treatment settings.
The conceptualisation and creation of the Adherence App took three years and was funded by New Nexus, a Dutch company that specializes in the development of both business and consumer mobile applications. With funding from PEPFAR Community Grants, an 8 months pilot program was set to test viability and optimization of the App. A total of 55 persons living with HIV/AIDS were recruited from two hospitals; St. Monica and Port Florence community hospital to participate in the research and development of the Adherence App by offering data, insights, feedback and workforce. All the eligible persons were above 18 years and had a detectable viral load of >20 copies/mL within the past 6 months, report less than 100% self-reported medication adherence, and have an android smart phone, version 4.0 which could support Adherence App.
Technology Advancement
ART adherence among adolescents living with HIV is also a major public health concern. With the success pilot of the Adherence App, and both feedback and recommendations received from participating hospitals, clients and key stakeholders in healthcare during the official launch on 7th February 2022, LakeHub noted high feasibility and acceptability of the App. Together with other partners, LakeHub will continue working to improve engagement in HIV care using the App and modify the Apps’ features for better ART adherence.
