By Ojoma Akor
The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) says mentorship and continuous training is vital for strengthening healthcare delivery in Nigeria and across Africa.
Dr. Helen Omuh, Director of Prevention, Care and Treatment at the institute stated this during an interview with Health and Science Africa.
She explained that hands-on mentorship equips providers to deliver high quality services, which improves retention and treatment outcomes for people living with HIV.
“When services are good, clients return because they value the care,” she observed, adding that consistent quality supports adherence and sustained viral suppression.
She highlighted that mentoring a broad range of providers, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and volunteers, also reduces workload, shortens waiting time, and expands access to care.
She said, “Beyond service delivery, mentorship strengthens the use of data to guide performance and follow-up with clients whose viral loads are not suppressed.
Dr Omuh noted that sustainable training strategies already exist at IHVN’s HIV response, beginning with early mentorship by foreign experts who worked alongside local staff. This hands-on approach, she said, resembles postgraduate medical training where professionals learn through practice, feedback, and case reviews to improve outcomes.
She said IHVN also runs the ECHO program, which uses weekly virtual sessions to train healthcare providers, supported by CDC and the Global Fund. The challenge, she emphasized, is ensuring government ownership so that such initiatives continue beyond donor support.
She also said that regular updates were critical, and the ECHO platform remains a key forum for sharing new treatments and guidelines with healthcare providers.
According to her, typically, the government reviews and revises guidelines, then prints and distributes them to stakeholders, who in turn cascade the information to state teams and facilities.
“Updates are also supported through Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials, job aids, and weekly meetings with partner states. Conferences, such as the National AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Infections Control and Hepatitis Programme (NASCP) annual symposium, provide additional opportunities to ensure both providers and the public are informed and able to integrate new practices,” she added.
To read more on the interview visit https://healthandscienceafrica.com/2025/09/14/hiv-how-training-empowers-providers-boosts-patient-outcomes-expert/
