Improved health outcomes for the uninsured population are the ultimate gauge for assessing South Africa’s health care delivery. Priority interventions include the response to HIV, AIDS and TB, as well as programmes to improve maternal and child health.
Building on the work undertaken in the HIV Counselling and Testing project, which raised awareness of HIV counselling and testing (HCT) through a targeted national media campaign, the HIV/AIDS and TB project involves the implementation of an HCT public-private partnership franchise model which seeks to expand HCT coverage in the Northern Cape and Limpopo Provinces. A core component of the project is continuous training and quality control for all service providers involved.
As a partner in the Reducing Maternal and Child Mortality through Strengthening Primary Health Care (RMCH), HST has developed and implemented the national induction and orientation training of District Clinical Specialist Teams, including team leaders of community health workers. The project addressed the provision and monitoring of early antenatal care and neonatal services, and led to the development of educational resources to support the national contraceptive and fertility planning guidelines.
Consolidating a strong focus on maternal and child health, Maternal Events in Pregnancy (MEP) measured severe adverse events, pregnancy outcomes and congenital birth defects in infants of women receiving ART. This project arose from general advice to pregnant women not to take a large number of drugs because of potential or proven adverse effects on their unborn babies, which militates against adherence to antiretroviral medication.
The Programme for Economic Evaluation of Child and Maternal Health Interventions (PEECHI) focused on identifying, informing and establishing the most affordable, effective and scalable interventions for attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for maternal and child health, HIV and AIDS, sexually transmitted infections and tuberculosis.