Massive Response To HIV Survey

HealthTimes

PHASE one to the ongoing Zimbabwe Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (ZIMPHIA) 2020 has ended on a high note amidst indications that the survey has witnessed a response rate above 95 percent from communities.

In an interview with HealthTimes, ZIMPHIA Communications person, Blessed Gumbi said the first phase to the survey has already covered vast ground and phase two which will focus on the remaining communities.

We have done phase one of the survey and covered about 25 percent of the intended survey respondents. We did much work in Manicaland, Mashonaland East, Central, parts of Matabeleland North, South and Midlands.

“We are resuming Phase 2 today and we anticipate to take three months on Phase 2 to complete the survey. We have 36 teams, 24 covering the northern region and 12 teams covering the southern region. So far communities have been receptive of the program and our response rates are over 95%. The media is playing its role too as most communities are aware of our coming beforehand,” said Gumbi.

The ZIMPHIA study is a population household survey is led by the Health and Child Care Ministry working in collaboration with the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT), National Aids Council (NAC), and ICAP at the Columbia University. It is supported by the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) through the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The first ZIMPHIA survey was conducted between October 2015 and August 2016. Preliminary results were announced in December 2016. In Zimbabwe, the first country to conduct a PHIA survey, survey teams visited over 11,000 households, interviewed participants and provided HIV counseling and testing along with syphilis testing.

This offered HIV counseling and testing with return of results, collected information about household and individual characteristics and uptake of HIV care and treatment services. The preliminary results were announced in December 2016 and the final report was released in August 2019.