Quarterly Report: HP+ Jamaica (October-December 2016)

The program's five primary activities include refining and implementing the GBV screening tool at high-volume antiretroviral therapy (ART) sites, training People Living with HIV, key populations community leaders, peer navigators, and health facility workers in the Positive Health, Dignity, and Prevention (PHDP) curriculum, strengthening reporting of S&D at the facility level, providing technical assistance and support to national policy dialogues with an emphasis on the reporting and redress systems, and providing convening support and technical assistance to national policy dialogues with an emphasis on stigma and discrimination reduction. From October to December 2016, HP+ Jamaica continued implementing the activities outlined in the workplan for the period March to December 2016. Component 1, Refine and implement the GBV screening tool at high-volume ART sites and identify cases for follow-up with an emphasis on key populations, involved engaging a local GBV expert to provide technical and training leadership. The consultant reviewed and updated the GBV curriculum, trained key staff from 12 high-volume ART PEPFAR priority sites in the GBV curriculum, and trained National Family Planning Board Sexual Health Agency (NFPB SHA) Prevention and Enabling Environment and Human Rights Component Staff in GBV and the importance of collecting health facility level data. A total of 69 persons were trained in the GBV curriculum. Component 2, Train People Living with HIV, key populations community leaders, peer navigators, and health facility workers at high-volume ART sites in the Positive Health, Dignity, and Prevention (PHDP) curriculum, involved updating the PHDP curriculum to reflect current HIV policies and guidelines and supportive area content. HP+ used the feedback from participants to develop new modules for the PHDP curriculum, finalized the adaptation of four key modules of the PHDP, and successfully piloted the adapted PHDP training with 11 key HIV clinical and support staff at St. Ann's Bay Health Center. HP+ also delivered the adapted PHDP modules for clinical and support staff to 110 additional health facility staff at the South, West, South East, and North East Regional health facilities. Component 3, Strengthen reporting of S&D at the facility level, involved updating the data collection protocol in response to questions from the IRB committee. HP+ also began to lay the foundational groundwork for rapid scale-up of facility level interventions at the start of year two. Planned activities for the next quarter include finalizing logistics for the data collection team once IRB approval is received and beginning data collection in Q3. Component 4, Provide technical assistance and support to national policy dialogues with an emphasis on the reporting and redress systems, involved engaging a graphic artist to develop low-literacy IEC materials through key population focus groups, finalizing a brief and summary PowerPoint of findings and recommendations of what redress options are implementable for the NHDRRS within the Jamaican legal framework, and dissolving and reconvening the sub-committees of EEHR TWG in accordance with new TORs. Planned activities for the next quarter include continuing to support the NHDRRS Steering Committee through provision of technical assistance to review policy documents and guide implementation of assessment findings and disseminating a brief of key findings and recommendations. Component 5, Provide convening support and technical assistance to national policy dialogues with an emphasis on stigma and discrimination reduction, involved providing technical assistance to JN+, participating in the TWG meetings and the Oversight Monitoring Committee (OMC) of the Jamaica Country Coordinating Mechanism (JCCM), and contributing to the quarterly Redress Partners meetings chaired by EEHR. Planned activities for the next quarter include continuing to participate in the technical working groups and steering committee meetings with the aim of supporting harmonization of activities across groups, reporting on HP+ activities, and supporting Stigma and Discrimination reduction interventions in particular. The pipeline report for HP+ Jamaica indicates that the total obligations as of October 1-30 were $1,445,757, with expenditures of $72,048 and a cumulative expenditure of $752,703 as of December 31, 2016. The actual burn rate for the period was 52%, with 11 months remaining at the actual burn rate. The percentage spent as of December 2016 was 52%.