[Consequences and experiences of the transition to adult medicine for young people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)]

Professional's Perspectives on Care Management of Young People with Perinatally Acquired HIV during Transition: A Qualitative Study in Adult Care Setting

Background

Increasing numbers of young people with perinatally acquired HIV are surviving to adulthood. When they come of age, they leave pediatric services in which they were followed and have to be transferred to the adult health care system. Difficulties in adaptation to adult care and the numbers of young people lost to follow up after transfer to adult care have been reported. This transition phase and their retention in adult care are crucial in maintaining the clinical status of these young with HIV in adulthood. Our study aimed to explore how HIV professionals working in adult care perceive and adapt their practices to young people in transition.

Methods

Qualitative interviews were conducted with 18 health and social services professionals in hospitals or patient associations in France. A thematic analysis was conducted.

Results

Adult care professionals were found to be making a distinction between these young people and their patients who were infected during adulthood. On the basis of the healthcare teams’ experience, a simplified categorization of these young people into four levels can be used: those “who have everything good”; those who have some deficiencies that must be addressed; those “who have everything bad”; and those lost to follow up. Professionals interviewed highlighted the difficulties they encountered with young people in transition. Three types of problematic situations were identified: problems of acceptance of the disease; communication problems; and problems of disorientation in the new care environment.

Conclusions

Despite the lack of specific training or national policy recommendations for the integration of young people with perinatally acquired HIV into adult services, all the adult healthcare teams interviewed tried to adapt their practice to this population. The results suggested that professional involvement during transition should depend on the characteristics of the patient, not be limited to a single transition model and that a dedicated structure for transition care is not appropriate for all young people.

Bridging worlds, breaking rules: Clinician perspectives on transitioning young people with perinatally acquired HIV into adult care in a low prevalence setting

The first generation of young people with perinatally acquired HIV is moving into adulthood, precipitating a transition from pediatric to adult care. As the first research appraisal of Australian clinician perspectives on this process, this article makes a unique contribution by examining the particular challenges associated with transitioning this population into adult care in regions of low HIV prevalence among young people. Qualitative interviews were conducted with twelve pediatric and adult care clinicians and analyzed for dominant and diverging themes. Clinicians anticipated significant client vulnerabilities during transition and worked beyond the boundaries of their roles and service parameters to keep clients engaged as they moved between pediatric and adult care. Strategies to strengthen the transition process focused on communication and teamwork, informed by and responsive to the needs of individual young people and their families. Clinicians working in settings with very small numbers of young people with HIV must advocate for a hidden minority with little potential for gaining large scale recognition or system changes. New conversations are needed to design a stronger and more sustainable transition process for both young people living with HIV, and their clinicians who care for them, in low prevalence settings.