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Review
. 2023 Feb;24(2):107-110.
doi: 10.1111/hiv.13427. Epub 2022 Nov 23.

A call for health systems to monitor the health-related quality of life of people living with HIV

Jeffrey V Lazarus  1   2 , Marie Claire Van Hout  3 , Maria J Fuster-Ruizdeapodaca  4 , Graham Brown  5 , Giovanni Guaraldi  6
Affiliations
Free article
Review

A call for health systems to monitor the health-related quality of life of people living with HIV

Jeffrey V Lazarus et al. HIV Med. 2023 Feb.
Free article

Abstract

Introduction: The World Health Organization's (WHO's) new global health strategy on HIV represents a major step toward a broader conceptualization of HIV care. It recognizes the importance of addressing chronic care more fully and-for the first time ever-the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of people living with HIV (PLHIV).

Methods: A thorough literature review was conducted in order to analyse how the WHO strategy on HIV for 2022-2030 addresses the monitoring of the HRQoL of PLHIV for the next decade and compared it to that of other countries and health authorities.

Results: Unlike for other issues, the strategy does not include quantitative targets for 2030, thus falling short of committing to monitoring global progress in improving the long-term well-being of PLHIV.

Conclusions: We urge national health systems not to wait for WHO to lead on this issue. Seeking good HRQoL outcomes for PLHIV can confer far-reaching benefits on health systems. The feasibility of monitoring population-level HRQoL has been demonstrated through the use of simple tools like patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and patient-reported experience measures (PREMs). Many countries can already set HRQoL monitoring targets, similar to those presented in this viewpoint, while we work toward an agreed minimum metric for use by all countries.

Keywords: HIV; health policy; health-related quality of life; right to health; well-being.

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References

REFERENCES

    1. WHO. Global Health Sector Strategies on, Respectively, HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections for the Period 2022-2030. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2022. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240053779. Accessed August 30, 2022.
    1. Burgui C, Guy D, Fresán U, Kall M, Castilla J, Lazarus JV. Patient satisfaction with HIV care service in Spain: results from a cross-sectional patient survey. AIDS Care. 2022; 34:1-7.
    1. Kall M, Marcellin F, Harding R, Lazarus JV, Carrieri P. Patient-reported outcomes to enhance person-centred HIV care. Lancet HIV. 2019/11/30. 2020;7(1):e59-e68.
    1. Public Health England. Positive Voices: The National Survey of People Living with HIV. PHE Publications; 2020; GW-993. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hiv-positive-voices-survey. Accessed August 30, 2022.
    1. Guaraldi G, Milic J, Wu AW. What is the measure of success in HIV? The fourth 90: quality of life or healthy aging? Eur Geriatr Med. 2019;10(2):267-274.

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