The FLASH Project is a health systems and HIV/AIDS programme implemented through the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau (UCMB) to strengthen the capacity of health facilities to provide quality and sustainable HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment services. Zia Angelina Health Centre III has benefited from the FLASH programme for approximately ten years, through different phases and project interventions.
The project has played an important role in strengthening the Health Centre’s HIV/AIDS programme by providing technical, commodity and capacity-building support. This support has complemented the efforts of Zia Angelina Health Centre and other development partners in ensuring that people living with HIV/AIDS have continued access to essential services.
Key Areas of Support
1. Support supervision and mentorship
Through UCMB, FLASH has provided regular support supervision and mentorship to Zia Angelina Health Centre. These visits have enabled health workers to receive technical guidance on HIV/AIDS service delivery, identify gaps and develop appropriate measures to improve programme performance.
The supervision has covered areas such as HIV testing and counselling, linkage to care, treatment adherence, patient monitoring, documentation, reporting, infection prevention and quality improvement. The mentorship approach has also helped health workers strengthen their practical skills and maintain compliance with national HIV/AIDS programme standards.
2. Provision of HIV/AIDS medicines and test kits
One of the significant contributions of the FLASH programme has been supporting the availability of essential HIV/AIDS commodities at Zia Angelina Health Centre. This has included the provision of HIV/AIDS medicines, HIV testing kits and other programme-related commodities.
The availability of these commodities has supported uninterrupted access to HIV testing, treatment and follow-up services for clients enrolled in HIV care. It has also reduced the risk of interruptions in treatment resulting from shortages of essential commodities.
3. Training and capacity building of health workers
FLASH has supported training and continuous capacity development for health workers involved in HIV/AIDS services. The training has enhanced staff knowledge and skills in the management of HIV/AIDS and strengthened their ability to respond to the changing needs of people living with HIV.
Training and mentorship have also contributed to improved service delivery, patient management, documentation, data quality and adherence to national HIV/AIDS guidelines.
4. Programme monitoring and performance improvement
The project has supported monitoring of HIV/AIDS programme performance at the Health Centre. Through supervision, review of programme data and follow-up of identified gaps, the project has helped Zia Angelina assess progress against HIV/AIDS service delivery targets.
This has encouraged the Health Centre to identify areas requiring improvement and implement corrective actions. The approach has contributed to strengthening accountability and the quality of HIV/AIDS programme data used for decision-making.
5. Strengthening HIV/AIDS care and treatment services
Through the combined provision of technical support, medicines, test kits and staff capacity building, FLASH has contributed to strengthening HIV/AIDS care and treatment services at Zia Angelina Health Centre.
The programme has supported the Health Centre in providing services across the HIV care continuum, including HIV testing, linkage to care, treatment, adherence support, monitoring and follow-up. These services have helped people living with HIV to access continued care closer to their communities.
Contribution to Zia Angelina Health Centre
Over the approximately ten years of FLASH-supported interventions, the project has contributed significantly to the development and strengthening of the HIV/AIDS programme at Zia Angelina Health Centre. The support has helped build the capacity of health workers, improve the availability of HIV/AIDS commodities, strengthen programme monitoring and improve the quality and continuity of HIV/AIDS services.
The project has also complemented support received from other partners, including AMU Luxembourg, enabling Zia Angelina Health Centre to provide a more comprehensive response to the health and psychosocial needs of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
Sustainability and Lessons Learned
The long-term engagement of FLASH at Zia Angelina demonstrates the importance of sustained technical support in strengthening HIV/AIDS services at health-facility level. The combination of capacity building, mentorship, supervision, commodity support and programme monitoring has enabled the Health Centre to progressively strengthen its HIV/AIDS programme.
The experience has also demonstrated that effective HIV/AIDS programming requires strong collaboration between the health facility, UCMB, government health structures, development partners and the community. This partnership has been instrumental in maintaining HIV/AIDS services and improving the capacity of Zia Angelina Health Centre to respond to the needs of its catchment population.