Mentor Mothers promote the birth of HIV-uninfected children in Quelimane​ Leocádia cooking in her backyard Photographer: Abú Choe  

Intensive Monitoring of Provider-Initiated Counseling & Testing (PICT) Performance Improves the Identification of People Living with HIV in Namacurra​
 
 
 

The 2018 Jornadas Nacionais de Saúde (National Health Days) scientific conference was held in Maputo, Mozambique from September 17 through 20, 2018. This conference occurs every three years, and is a gathering of clinicians, researchers and scientists, academics, and policymakers operating in the national health system of Mozambique. The scientific program included oral and poster presentations on a range of health-related issues specific to Mozambique. The theme for this year was “Promoting Intersectional and Community Participation to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals.”


 
 The 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) was held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands from July 23 through July 27, 2018. This conference is the premier world-wide gathering for those working in the field of HIV, including researchers and clinicians as well as policymakers, people living with HIV, and activists. Friends in Global Health (FGH) team members were in attendance to present their work, and to learn and engage with others committed to ending the epidemic.

Mozambique has one of the highest rates of HIV infection — about 13% — in sub-Saharan Africa. With the expansion of health care delivery services provided by Vanderbilt’s Friends in Global Health (VUMC/FGH), patients in Quelimane District, the capital of Zambézia Province, now account for more than 30% of the total number of patients receiving care through the Avante Zambézia program. Multidisciplinary teams of clinical and support staff provide assistance to health facilities in the District. 

Eighteen-year-old Ina Mora was in the district of Gilé visiting her husband’s family when she began feeling ill in May 2017. “Sometimes I had headaches, stomach aches and diarrhea. Both my legs got swollen and I got sick,” recalls Ina.

Male Champions Bring Couples Closer Together  “I was always sick and tired. I could barely do anything,” Laurinda Emiliano tells us during an interview. Laurinda, 19, lives in the Bairro Cimento within the village of Zalala, Quelimane District, Zambézia Province.

The Impact of Community-Based Information, Education and Communication Initiatives and Importance of Community Adherence Support Groups 
 
 Abudo Nicuacua was diagnosed with HIV in 2006.

Sangariveira Secondary School: A DREAMS-Friendly School
 
 Sangariveira Secondary School (SSS) was established in 2012 in Quelimane, Zambézia Province. Currently, the school has 4,980 students, 2,610 male and 2,370 female, who are divided into 42 groups, with morning, afternoon and night student rotations.
 
 Located in the outskirts of Quelimane, SSS has a gloomy past. It was infamous for high levels of drug use, early and unwanted pregnancies, prostitution, and illness. 

Health Counselors Improve Patient Satisfaction in Quelimane
 
 Farias Fernando Romane recently moved from the Coalane neighborhood to Canecos, within Quelimane District. The move meant that he also changed the health facility where he receives HIV care. When our team met him, it was only his second visit to 24 de Julho Health Center. He was already pleased with the quality of care he has been receiving.