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. 2022 Jun 21;19(13):7595.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph19137595.

The Management of HIV Care Services in Central and Eastern Europe: Data from the Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group

Agata Skrzat-Klapaczyńska  1 , Justyna D Kowalska  1 , Larisa Afonina  2 , Svitlana Antonyak  3 , Tatevik Balayan  4 , Josip Begovac  5 , Dominik Bursa  1 , Gordana Dragovic  6 , Deniz Gokengin  7 , Arjan Harxhi  8 , David Jilich  9 , Kerstin Kase  10 , Botond Lakatos  11 , Mariana Mardarescu  12 , Raimonda Matulionyte  13 , Cristiana Oprea  14 , Aleksandr Panteleev  15 , Antonios Papadopoulos  16 , Lubomir Sojak  17 , Janez Tomazic  18 , Anna Vassilenko  19 , Marta Vasylyev  20 , Antonija Verhaz  21 , Nina Yancheva  22 , Oleg Yurin  23 , Andrzej Horban  1
Affiliations

The Management of HIV Care Services in Central and Eastern Europe: Data from the Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group

Agata Skrzat-Klapaczyńska et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging time for medical care, especially in the field of infectious diseases (ID), but it has also provided an opportunity to introduce new solutions in HIV management. Here, we investigated the changes in HIV service provision across Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries before and after the COVID-19 outbreak.

Methods: The Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group consists of experts in the field of ID from 24 countries within the CEE region. Between 11 September and 29 September 2021, the group produced an on-line survey, consisting of 32 questions on models of care among HIV clinics before and after the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak.

Results: Twenty-three HIV centers from 19 countries (79.2% of all countries invited) participated in the survey. In 69.5% of the countries, there were more than four HIV centers, in three countries there were four centers (21%), and in four countries there was only one HIV center in each country. HIV care was based in ID hospitals plus out-patient clinics (52%), was centralized in big cities (52%), and was publicly financed (96%). Integrated services were available in 21 clinics (91%) with access to specialists other than ID, including psychologists in 71.5% of the centers, psychiatrists in 43%, gynecologists in 47.5%, dermatologists in 52.5%, and social workers in 62% of all clinics. Patient-centered care was provided in 17 centers (74%), allowing consultations and tests to be planned for the same day. Telehealth tools were used in 11 centers (47%) before the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, and in 18 (78%) after (p = 0.36), but were represented mostly by consultations over the telephone or via e-mail. After the COVID-19 outbreak, telehealth was introduced as a new medical tool in nine centers (39%). In five centers (28%), no new services or tools were introduced.

Conclusions: As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, tools such as telehealth have become popularized in CEE countries, challenging the traditional approach to HIV care. These implications need to be further evaluated in order to ascertain the best adaptations, especially for HIV medicine.

Keywords: COVID-19; Central and Eastern Europe; HIV; models of care; telehealth.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The utilization of telehealth before and after the COVID-19 outbreak in 23 HIV centers in Eastern and Central Europe (p-value 0.36).
Figure 2
Figure 2
The types of telehealth used in HIV medical care before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The new tools introduced into HIV medical care after the COVID-19 outbreak.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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