HSH705, Needs Assessment And Health Program Planning

Running head: NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
Need assessment for HIV services in North India
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Author Note

1NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
Executive summary
HIV is a major health concern and leading cause of death in the world. The infection occurs
through sexual acts, sharing of syringes and from mother to fetus. This report aims to formulate a
need assessment plan to treat HIV among drug abusers in North India. This target population has
been chosen because drug abuse is widely prevalent among the people in that region and
accounts for a large number of HIV infections.

2NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
Table of Contents
A. Introduction................................................................................................................3
B. Discussion..................................................................................................................3
i. Background................................................................................................................3
ii. Review of two need assessment plans...................................................................6
iii. Need assessment tools for target population........................................................11
iv. Drafting of survey................................................................................................13
v. Inventory of key services.....................................................................................19
C. Conclusion...............................................................................................................20
References..........................................................................................................................21
APPENDIX A....................................................................................................................24
APPENDIX B....................................................................................................................26

3NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
A. Introduction
AIDS or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a series of devastating infections
that are caused by the HIV or the human immunodeficiency virus. It is a retrovirus, which
attacks and kills the white blood cells, which are essential to the body's immune system. In
the 21st century, still no cure has been formulated for this devastating and frightening disease
present in the world. AIDS and HIV continue to affect million lives around the world. The
principal modes of transmission are through perinatal transmission, sexual contact or blood
transfusion. The brutal circle of drug abuse has engulfed India. The number of addicts is
increasing every day. Drug abuse started off among the high-income group youth. Presently,
it has crossed social boundaries and permeated to every section of the society (Hser et al.
2016). The target population selected for this study is drug abusers from North India.
B. Discussion
i. Background
According to the World Health Organization, HIV has claimed more than 35 million lives
till date. Globally, 1.0 million people died from HIV and its related factors in 2016. At the end of
last year, there were 36.7 million HIV patients and 1.8 million newly infected patients. 43%
children and 54% adult with HIV currently receive antiretroviral therapy (ART). Statistics state
that the WHO African Region is most affected, with 25.6 million AIDS patients (Shisana et al.
2014). It accounts for two thirds of new global HIV infections. Around 25.5 million people
living with HIV live in sub-Saharan African regions. Majority of them (an estimated 19 million)
live in south and east Africa. 40% of all HIV patients are not aware of being infected.

4NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
Figure 1- Prevalence of HIV among adults by WHO
Source- (Who.int, 2017)
Between 2000 and 2016, the rates of HIV infections reduced by 39%. HIV related deaths
lowered by one third of the population and 13.1 million people were saved due to ART. The
different HIV programs formulated by health organizations and governments helped in this
achievement. According to the UNAIDS gap report 2016, the prevalence of HIV epidemic is
third largest in India (Naco.gov.in, 2017). When compared to other middle-income countries,
this value looks small. However, owing to India's large population, the value amounts to 2.1
million HIV patients. Recently, there has been a 32% decline in new HIV cases (86,000 in 2015),

5NEED ASSESSMENT FOR HIV SERVICES IN NORTH INDIA
and a 54% decline in AIDS-related deaths between 2007 and 2015. As per the India HIV
Estimation 2015 report, HIV prevalence in adults (15–49 years) was approximately 0.26% in
2015 (Naco.gov.in, 2017)). There was 0.22% prevalence among females and 0.30% among
males.
India has recently witnessed a massive increase in drug hauls over the past five years
according to data released by various reports. India acts like a prime target for illegal drug
consumption according to the World Drug Report. Recent data suggest that more than 10.7
million people are drug users in the country. The demographics are represented by the WHO
reports (as shown in Figure 3). Drug menace is a matter of concern in North India. The 2015
Punjab Opioid Dependence Survey found 230,000 drug users in the state (Pal et al. 2015). It was
conducted between February and April. This amount equates to around 836 drug addicts per
100,000 people. Key populations who are at an increased risk of HIV include homosexual men,
drug addicts, prisoners, sex workers and their consumers, and transgender people. These
statistics show that there is a need of HIV assessment in the northern part of the country.