RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Building HIV healthcare worker capacity through telehealth in Vietnam
JF BMJ Global Health
JO BMJ Global Health
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
SP e002166
DO 10.1136/bmjgh-2019-002166
VO 5
IS 4
A1 Todd M Pollack
A1 Vo Thi Tuyet Nhung
A1 Dang Thi Nhat Vinh
A1 Duong Thi Hao
A1 Le Thi Thu Trang
A1 Pham Anh Duc
A1 Nguyen Van Kinh
A1 Nguyen Thi Hoai Dung
A1 Duong Lan Dung
A1 Nguyen Thi Ninh
A1 Ho Thi Thanh Huyen
A1 Vo Xuan Huy
A1 Duong Minh Hai
A1 Truong Huu Khanh
A1 Nguyen Thi Thu Hien
A1 Pham Tram An Khuong
A1 Nguyen The Trong
A1 Nguyen Van Lam
A1 Vu Ngoc Phinh
A1 Do Thi Phuong
A1 Nguyen Duc Duat
A1 Nguyen Thanh Liem
A1 Nguyen Thanh Binh
A1 Nguyen K Chi
A1 Le Ngoc Yen
A1 Lisa Cosimi
YR 2020
UL http://gh.bmj.com/content/5/4/e002166.abstract
AB Development of a robust technical assistance system is an essential component of a sustainable HIV response. Vietnam’s National HIV Program is transitioning from a largely donor-funded programme to one primarily supported by domestic resources. Telehealth interventions are increasingly being used for training, mentoring and expert consultation in high-resource settings and hold significant potential for use as a tool to build HIV health worker capacity in low and middle-income countries. We designed, implemented and scaled up a novel HIV telehealth programme for Vietnam, with the goal of building a sustainable training model to support the country’s HIV workforce needs. Over a 4-year period, HIV telehealth programmes were initiated in 17 public institutions with participation of nearly 700 clinical sites across 62 of the 63 provinces in the country. The telehealth programme was used to deliver certificate training courses, provide clinical mentoring and case-based learning, support programme implementation, provide coaching in quality improvement and disseminate new guidelines and policies. Programme evaluation demonstrated improved health worker self-reported competence in HIV care and treatment and high satisfaction among the programme participants. Lessons learnt from Vietnam’s experience with telehealth can inform country programmes looking to develop a sustainable approach to HIV technical assistance and health worker capacity building.