How might we make HIV self-testing (HIVST) kits and contraception available to young women at drug shops in Tanzania?
Young women experience major barriers to accessing family planning and reproductive health (FPRH) services, including clinic access issues, lack of youth-friendly services, and provider bias. HIV self-testing kits (HIVST) increases convenience and confidentiality, key factors for young women. Government efforts are underway to allow HIVST in Tanzania, but little is known about how to ensure access and support for young women. In TZ:
- 30% of PLWHIV are unaware of their status
- 46% of AGYW have never tested for HIV
ADDOs are extensions of the health system that the government sees as acceptable to broadly distribute HIVST. Creating “girl-friendly ” ADDOs could reduce stigma and stimulate demand for HIVST and other sensitive products among young women. With ~13,000 ADDOs in Tanzania, ADDOs are often women’s first point of access for contraception, pregnancy tests, and informal counseling and referral.
Our ultimate goal is to reduce HIV incidence, unintended pregnancy, and maternal mortality by creating a sustainable, easily accessible, community-based platform for delivering HIV prevention and other sexual and reproductive health services to young women.
We hypothesized that the creation of “girl-friendly ” ADDOs could reduce known barriers to care, including stigma, and stimulate demand for HIVST and other sensitive products among young women.
The result —Malkia Klabu— is a loyalty program designed to enhance drug shops’ role as HIV prevention and sexual and reproductive health providers. In Malkia Klabu, AGYW earned punches for shop purchases, including free HIV self-tests, redeemable for small prizes of increasing value; free SRH products could be requested discreetly by pointing to punch card symbols.
