Preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV in rural Zambia

Guy Hubbard, UNICEF

Mothers and children in Zambia have a better chance as a result of a new, UNICEF-supported program that focuses on prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission.

LUAPULA PROVINCE, Zambia (April 16, 2008) — For the past eight months, 34-year-old Regina, a mother in Zambia's Luapula Province, has been waiting anxiously for the final test results that will decide her daughter's future. It is possible that her child may test positive for HIV.

Regina's local clinic runs a prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) program. By providing both the mother and newborn child with doses of the antiretroviral drug Neviropene, the program can reduce the chance of the virus being transmitted to the child.

"During childbirth, they gave me and my baby Neviropene, and because of that I hope that my baby will be HIV-negative," said Regina.

Addressing a lack of resources

Most clinics in Luapula do not provide PMTCT services. In fact, most are not even able to provide HIV testing, even though Zambia suffers from one of the world's highest rates of HIV. This lack of resources means that transmission of the virus from mother to child remains alarmingly high.

"There are some of my patients who we suspect have HIV and their babies died after being delivered," said nurse Regina Olwita. "I think about 10 percent of my patients would need PMTCT."

Due to the lack of proper services, health workers in rural areas like Luapula have often been forced to watch helplessly as babies continue to be born with the virus, despite the fact that effective and affordable PMTCT programs are available elsewhere.

Now, thanks to an agreement between UNICEF, the non-governmental organization Family Health International and the Zambian Ministry of Health, PMTCT programs are being established in all of Luapula's rural clinics.

Lifesaving services

The initial rollout of the program will include antiretroviral treatment for both pregnant women and children, as well as the training of health workers and other associated services.

"This is important because women do not go out of their area for prenatal services, so you have to offer PMTCT at every place that they go to," said the Zambia Country Director of Family Health International, Cathy Thompson. "By expanding these services, we will be able to reach 90 percent of people in Luapula Province."

Children have to be eight months old to undergo the final test. Yet despite the agonizing wait, Regina remains optimistic. With the new PMTCT program, mothers living with HIV throughout Luapula Province will have hope for their children's future.