Dispensing of anti-retrovirals (ARVs) every month is a lot of work for HIV treatment clinics and takes travel time for HIV patients. To lessen this problem, Vietnam has begun implementing a multiple months dispensing approach, which allows some patients to collect more than one month of their ARVs when they need refills. Rolling out this new approach requires careful forecasting of the national ARV supply. USAID’s Global Health Supply Chain Program (GHSC-PSM) recently helped the Vietnam Administration of HIV/AIDS Control to develop and implement supply-chain management guidelines for this approach.

So What? Evidence from other countries shows that the multi month approach not only increases patient adherence to ARV treatment, but also reduces the number of patients who discontinue treatment and decreases workload for health workers. This will help Vietnam to achieve its 90-90-90 goals. (90-90-90 is a treatment target by UNAIDS that by 2020, 90 percent of all people living with HIV will know their HIV status; 90 percent of all people with diagnosed HIV infection will receive sustained antiretroviral therapy; and 90 percent of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy will have viral suppression.)