On Friday, April 26, 2019, CHS through its Adolescents Living with HIV (ALHIV) Adherence Initiative launched a pilot of an Adolescent Adherence Mobile Application in Siaya. The application dubbed “Heroes App” is aimed at improving the adherence of HIV-positive adolescents to their medication by creating a virtual platform where the young people can interact with each other, access useful information on HIV and other associated health matters, engage health experts on a real-time basis, among other useful functionalities.
“This app will go a long way in helping our adolescents adhere to their HIV treatment and we are happy as a county to see this innovation finally come to life,” commented Kennedy Oruenjo, the Siaya County Director for Public Health.
Recent studies have shown a general decline in HIV incidence amongst the general population. However, new rates of HIV infections have been on the rise amongst the adolescent population globally.
Furthermore, Siaya County has the fourth highest number of people living with HIV in Kenya, with an HIV prevalence that is 4.2 times higher than the national average. By the end of 2015, 12,253 adolescents aged 10 to 19 years were living with HIV in Siaya and contributed to 28% of all new HIV infections in the county.
“Through the launch and subsequent roll-out of this application today, we hope to increase treatment adherence among adolescents in Siaya and reduce the number of new HIV infections and STIs among adolescents. We also hope to help avert any risky sexual behaviours through a health chats platform and the provision of adolescent-friendly resources,” said Ms. Caroline Thaluliba, the Program Manager of the Adolescents Adherence Initiative.
CHS Chief Executive Officer, Dr Paul Wekesa appreciated the great odds that the young people have to overcome in their treatment journey and urged them to soldier on while encouraging each other to attain and maintain viral suppression.
The Chief Guest, Dr Stewart Kabaka who is currently the Acting Head of the Neonatal, Child and Adolescent Unit, commended the great milestones the county has achieved in its fight against HIV. Alongside the other key guests, he had an opportunity to interact with the application and test its interactive features.
The development and rollout of this application was made possible through support from the Children’s Investment Foundation Fund (CIFF) through the Adolescents Adherence Initiative. Apart from this technological innovation, the program will also be exploring new school-based strategies for HIV testing to increase the number of adolescents who know their HIV status in Siaya county by 40%.
The colourful event was attended by adolescents from Rarieda, Bondo and Gem, Siaya County and CHS staff, as well as representatives from CIFF and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
