| dc.description.abstract | Background: Most people living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa are initiated to
antiretroviral therapy with advanced stage HIV infection.
Despite the fact that timely
initiation to ART is a critical milestone in achieving full potential of HIV treatment scale-up,
there are various bottlenecks associated with initiation to ART among PLWHA. It was
therefore paramount to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices associated with pain
assessment among nurses.
Methods: The study was carried out at the ART clinic of Entebbe General Hospital, 384
participants took part in the study, these were selected using simple random sampling
technique. The study utilized a cross-sectional study design and a self administered
questionnaire was used to collect data from the participants. Data was analyzed using SPSS
and presented inform of frequency and contingency tables.
Results: Data was collected was collected among 384 respondents. Individual factors such as
age, marital status, level of education, ever heard about antiretroviral therapy/drugs before
enrollment to ART, source of information about ART and health of the PLWHA (P<0.05).
With regards to health facility factors associate with initiation to ART, distance to the health
facility, publicizing ART services by the facility, friendly health care providers, perceived
knowledge of HCWs on ART treatment by PLWHA, Perceived confidentiality of medical
records of PLWHA and the attitude of Health care providers towards PLWHA at the facility.
Psychosocial factors associated with Initiation to ART among PLWHA included receiving
psychosocial support in the past one month, who gives the social support, use of alcohol or
other drugs, and stigma from the society (P<0.05).
Conclusion and recommendation: Programmatic initiatives promoting targeted support to
extension of ART services closer to PLWHA and earlier diagnosis, engagement of clients in
ART initiation may facilitate earlier ART initiation. | en_US |
