• Cari Courtenay-Quirk, Amanda L Geller, Denise Duran, and Nely Honwana.
• Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA.
• J Eval Clin Pract. 2020 Jun 1; 26 (3): 1005-1012.

RationaleEffective human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention requires a coordinated continuum of services to foster early diagnosis and treatment. Early linkage to care (LTC) is critical, yet programmes differ in strategies to monitor LTC.MethodsIn 2014, we visited 23 HIV testing and care service delivery points in Mozambique to assess programme strategies for monitoring LTC. We interviewed key informants, reviewed forms, and matched records across service points to identify successful models and challenges.ResultsForms most useful for tracking LTC included individual identifiers, eg, patient name, unique identifier (ie, National Health Identification Number [NID]), sex, and date of birth. The majority (67%) of records matched occurred in the presence of a unique NID. Key informants described challenges related to processes, staffing, and communication between service delivery points to confirm LTC.ConclusionsWhile tracking clients from HIV testing to care is possible, programmes with insufficient tracking procedures are likely to underreport LTC. Adoption of additional patient identifiers in testing registers and standardized protocols may improve LTC programme monitoring and reduce underreporting.Published 2019. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

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