Masivukeni

Partner(s): Robert Remien Department of Psychiatry Access: Private Released: March 2009

CCNMTL and Dr. Robert Remien, a research scientist at the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies and associate professor of clinical psychology (in psychiatry), received a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to create and pilot Masivukeni, a multimedia version of an HIV-treatment adherence program, SMART Couples, that has been effective in New York City HIV care clinics. The grant allows the program to extend its reach to South Africa, which has one of the highest rates of HIV in the world. Originally named SMART +SA, Masivukeni also aims to enrich Columbia courses at the Mailman School of Public Health and other programs focused on health disparities.

Masivukeni, which loosely translates to "let's wake up" in Xhosa, is a computer-assisted program that supports counselors at health clinics in Cape Town, South Africa in assisting HIV-positive adults to adhere to their antiretroviral drug regimens through a combination of education and support. The program uses enhanced text, imagery, animations, audio, and video to teach the basics of how HIV and antiretrovirals affect health, and to build problem solving and social support skills that patients can use to overcome barriers to treatment adherence. Research partners and community stakeholders from Cape Town provided guidance on Masivukeni's design, language, and skill-building activities to ensure that the program incorporated culturally relevant themes. A central component of Masivukeni is the Island Activity, an interactive tool that depicts the improvement or decline of a patient's health using an animation of a person on an island surrounded by rising or lowering water.

In March 2009, a team from CCNMTL and the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies trained two adherence counselors at an HIV clinic in Cape Town to deliver Masivukeni to 30 patients who are experiencing challenges adhering to their HIV treatment. Based on results from this pilot project, CCNMTL and the HIV Center will research and explore ways to implement a broader study of Masivukeni.

The Masivukeni is a Triangle Initiative project.

Related project categories:
Medicine and Health | Training