Investments, Goals and Outcomes for Children Living with HIV (IGOHI)

Worldwide, nearly 2 million children are living with HIV, with 160,000 new infections annually. Untreated, HIV progresses to AIDS, which kills 100,000 children annually, mainly in African countries (UNAIDS 2022). These deaths are now largely preventable due to the widespread availability of free antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART is a highly effective treatment, allowing HIV patients of all ages to live near-normal lives. ART also prevents HIV transmission during childbirth and breastfeeding. Yet, lapses in treatment, for both mothers and children, lead to many unnecessary new infections and deaths. There is an urgent need to understand the needs of HIV-affected children and their families, and to identify practical approaches to prevent paediatric infection, promote adherence to treatment, and empower families with the knowledge that HIV-positive children can lead long, healthy and productive lives, if they get the right care. In order to address these knowledge needs, we must build a strong and equal partnership that can effectively identify the distinct barriers to HIV care for children, and co-design effective interventions. This collaboration must include an interdisciplinary team of health researchers with local and contextual knowledge, as well as public sector healthcare providers and local health organizations. We will use the pre-project to travel to Malawi and meet with potential partners. The purpose of these meetings will be to better understand the needs of children affected by HIV, strategic considerations of policy actors, and the scope for the establishment of an equal and effective partnership across a network of collaborators. This will allow us to develop theories and potential interventions that effectively address research and policy needs.