Websites that address national public health issues provide
an important mechanism to improve health education and services in resource
limited countries. This article describes the development, promotion and
initial evaluation of a national website to increase access to information and
resources about prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) among
healthcare workers and PMTCT stakeholders in Tanzania.
A participatory approach, involving the Tanzania Ministry of
Health and Social Welfare (MOHSW) and key PMTCT stakeholders, was used to
develop and manage the online PMTCT National Resource Center (NRC), http://pmtct.or.tz/.
The website was created with a content management system software system that
does not require advanced computer skills and facilitates content updates and
site management. The PMTCT NRC hosts related regularly updated PMTCT-related
news, resources and publications. Website implementation, access and
performance were evaluated over two years using Google Analytics data about
visits, page views, downloads, bounce rates and location of visitors,
supplemented by anecdotal feedback.
Following its launch in July 2013, the PMTCT NRC website
received a total of 28,400 visits, with 66,463 page views, over 2 years;
30 % of visits were from returning visitors. During year 1, visits
increased by 80 % from the first to second 6 month period and then
declined slightly (9–11 %) but remained stable in Year 2. Monthly visits
spiked by about 70 % during October 2013 and January 2014 in response to
the release and promotion of revised national PMTCT guidelines and training
manuals. The majority of visitors came from primarily urban areas in Tanzania
(50 %) and from other African countries (16 %). By year 2, over
one-third of visitors used mobile devices to access the site.
The successfully implemented PMTCT NRC website provides
centralized, easily accessed information designed to address the needs of
clinicians, educators and program partners in Tanzania. Ongoing involvement of
the MOHSW and key stakeholders are essential ensure the website’s growth,
effectiveness and sustainability. Additional efforts are needed to expand use
of the PMTCT NRC throughout the country. Future evaluations should examine the
role of the website in supporting implementation of national PMTCT guidelines
and services in Tanzania.
Below: Number of visits to the Tanzania PMTCT webpage. Number of visits to the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV National Resource Center website and resources downloaded from July 2013 through June 2015
Below: Sources of Tanzania PMTCT webpage traffic. Sources of traffic to the Tanzania Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV National Resource Center website from July 2013 through June 2015
Full article at:
By:
1FXBT Health, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
2François-Xavier Bagnoud Center, School of
Nursing, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey, USA
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv_insight
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