Capacity of health-care facilities to deliver HIV treatment and care services, Northern Tanzania, 2004.

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Few data exist on the current capacity of Tanzanian health-care facilities to deliver antiretroviral therapy (ART). We evaluated this capacity among Northern Zone facilities in 2004 using a questionnaire that addressed human resources, clinical facilities and services, and laboratory capacity. Of 19 facilities surveyed, nine (47%) had staff trained to manage ART and three (16%) prescribed ART. Two (11%) offered CD4 counts, five (26%) offered liver function tests, 16 (84%) offered chest radiography, and 18 (95%) offered acid-fast sputum staining. Of 12 (67%) facilities offering outpatient HIV/AIDS services, 12 (100%) provided co-trimoxazole to outpatients and six (50%) provided isoniazid (INH). All 19 (100%) facilities offered rapid HIV tests and full blood pictures. Overall in 2004, facilities needed strengthening to increase staff training in ART management and to implement INH for treatment of latent tuberculosis. Laboratory facilities for ART monitoring were inadequate, and outpatient ART was limited.