Annual Report Project Year Five (October 2014 to September 2015)

AID-596-LA-11-00001, continued implementation in Project Year V (October 2014 – September 2015) in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Panama. The project focused on strengthening the quality of care and improving the quality of life for people living with HIV and other vulnerable populations through the Continuum of Care (CoC) framework. Implementation of the Optimizing Performance for Quality (OPQ) methodology was underway in five countries, with Belize pending approval of standards for use in all health services, Guatemala and El Salvador implementing Continuous Quality Improvement, and Costa Rica, Panama, and Belize progressing in the institutionalization process. The project developed a regional document, "Methodological Framework to Guide the Adherence Strategy," which serves as a guide for National AIDS Programs to define their national adherence strategies. The project provided technical assistance to 76 hospitals, 83 health centers, 41 multisector networks, and 21 health personnel training institutions. This assistance included strengthening the capacity of health services to implement quality methodologies, developing competencies of pre and in-service personnel in topics related to HIV and biosafety, and forming and following up on multisector networks for HIV to deliver quality care and treatment from the community to health services. The project also provided in-service training to 2,110 people in OPQ, Learning for Performance, Biosafety, Stigma and Discrimination, and Adherence. Furthermore, 103 teaching faculty received pre-service training, and 1,282 network members representing governmental, non-governmental, and civil society sectors achieved competencies in thematic areas such as Stigma and Discrimination, Positive Health with Dignity and Prevention, and Adherence to ART. In Guatemala, the project provided technical assistance to develop and implement a Human Resources Information System (HRIS) training for personnel implementing the database. The contracts and training modules were concluded and implemented, with the National Civil Service Office expressing interest in expanding the contracts system to all branches of the government. The project continued to provide technical assistance to update the HIV curricula in 21 higher education institutions in areas such as Stigma and Discrimination, Biosafety, Post-exposure Prophylaxis, HIV-test counseling, and ART. Beginning next quarter, the project will provide technical assistance to Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Panama, while in Costa Rica, the project will provide follow-up to a transition process during the first two quarters of the fiscal year. Financially, the project began FY 2015 with a pipeline of $1,135,193, added $1,425,000 with MOD 9, and $1,236,883 with MOD 10. During the fiscal year, the project executed $2,842,609 and ended with a pipeline of $954,467. The project raised $1,685,820, or 102 percent, of the required cost-share amount of $1,665,000. The project continued alliances with the Global Fund, the Pan American Health Organization, the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS, the Regional Coordination Mechanism, and the Central American Council of Health Ministers, among others, to develop strategies and actions under a shared vision. The project's most outstanding achievement was the coordination with health services for an improved environment for people living with HIV, men who have sex with men, and transgender females to promote adherence to treatment under the Cascade of Care to achieve the 90-90-90 goals. The project provided technical assistance to update the protocols and give personnel competency training for the prevention of nosocomial infections. The Ministries of Health and the Panamanian Social Security Institute updated their protocols, and the project is providing technical assistance to Belize in the revision of their national norms.