Vietnam currently has more than 120,000 HIV patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART). In less than a year, more than 53,000 of these patients will transition from externally-funded to locally-financed treatment services under social health insurance. This month, USAID’s Sustainable HIV Response from Technical Assistance (SHIFT) activity worked with 56 healthcare providers from Bac Giang and Lao Cai provinces to implement Individual Treatment Continuation Plans (ITCPs).

ITCPs are tools developed by SHIFT to enable providers to upload each patient’s details into the online ITCP data entry and analysis system. These healthcare providers will counsel and support their ART patients to develop and implement ITCPs, which will ensure they stay on treatment during the transition, whether through social health insurance or out-of-pocket payments.

So What?  By helping almost 50% of Vietnam’s ART patients with ITCPs, USAID and its partners have ensured that they retain access to life-saving treatment during the transition. This will contribute to Vietnam’s ownership of a sustainable HIV/AIDS response.