From May 3-5, 2010, the Antiretroviral Treatment Regional Technical Consultation for Latin America and the Caribbean was held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The PEPFAR Adult Treatment Technical Working Group, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the Secretaría de Integración Social Centroamericana (SISCA) World Bank Project partnered with USAID/Dominican Republic and the AIDSTAR-One project to co-sponsor this technical consultation on maintaining and increasing access to quality antiretroviral therapy (ART) services in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). This technical consultation served in part as a follow-up to the previous SISCA/World Bank “Taller de Equipos Regionales Encargados de Medicamentos Antiretrovirrales” with a special focus on ensuring access to care, improving quality of treatment services, and harmonizing regional treatment programs.

This event brought together 90 technical experts including participants and presenters representing Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Mexico and the United States. Knowledge and experiences were shared through presentations, interactive question and answer sessions, and facilitated small group discussions. The specific objectives of the consultation were to:

• Provide the latest updates in evidence-based delivery of ART services for children, adolescents and adults
• Examine the implications of the latest WHO/PAHO HIV treatment guideline updates on national programs in regards to access, quality, and sustainability
• Discuss barriers to treatment access from the perspective of both patients and providers
• Explore models of service integration and review the practical implementation of HIV/AIDS service delivery integration in the region
• Discuss regional strategic monitoring and evaluation plans, including harmonization of indicators
• Provide a framework for adaptation and harmonization of guidelines and supply chain logistics to promote regional collaboration and improve cost effectiveness

The key outcomes of the consultation included:

• Enhanced clinical expertise of participants in evidence-based delivery of ART for adults, adolescents, children and infants
• Clearer understanding of the implications of the new guidelines on national programs in regards to access, quality, and sustainability
• Increased awareness of applicable models of HIV service integration that have been used in the region
• Concrete suggestions for implementation of the latest WHO/PAHO treatment guidelines, including cost modeling to find cost-effective and sustainable approaches to ART services
• Development of action oriented action plans by teams of representatives from Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama based on knowledge gained from the consultation

Photo Gallery

Presentations