Scaling Down to Scale Up: A Health Economic Analysis of Integrating Point-of-Care Syphilis Testing into Antenatal Care in Zambia during Pilot and National Rollout Implementation.

ABSTRACT: Maternal syphilis results in an estimated 500,000 stillbirths and neonatal deaths annually in Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the existence of national guidelines for antenatal syphilis screening, syphilis testing is often limited by inadequate laboratory and staff services. Recent availability of inexpensive rapid point-of-care syphilis tests (RST) can improve access to antenatal syphilis screening. A 2010 pilot in Zambia explored the feasibility of integrating RST within prevention of mother-to-child-transmission of HIV services. Following successful demonstration, the Zambian Ministry of Health adopted RSTs into national policy in 2011. Cost data from the pilot and 2012 preliminary national rollout were extracted from project records, antenatal registers, clinic staff interviews, and facili

SUBMITTER: Shelley KD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4430530 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature