The use of monitoring data and community feedback mechanisms to increase HIV testing among men during a cluster-randomised community mobilisation trial in South Africa

Abstract

This short communication describes the development and implementation of a programme monitoring and feedback process during a  cluster-randomised community mobilisation intervention conducted in rural Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Intervention  activities took place from August 2015 to July 2018 with the aim of addressing social barriers to HIV counselling and testing and  engagement in HIV care, with a specific focus on reaching men. Multiple monitoring systems were put in place to allow for early and  continuous corrective actions to be taken if activity goals, including target participation numbers in events or workshops, were not  reached. Clinic data, intervention monitoring data, team meetings and community feedback mechanisms allowed for triangulation of  data and creative responses to issues arising in implementation. Monitoring data must be collected and analysed carefully as they allow  researchers to better understand how the intervention is being delivered and to respond to challenges and make changes in the  programme and target approaches. An iterative process of sharing these data to generate community feedback on intervention  approaches was critical to the success of our programme, along with engaging men in the intervention. Community mobilisation  interventions to target the structural and social barriers impeding men’s uptake of services are feasible in this setting, but must  incorporate a continuous review of monitoring data and community collaboration to ensure that the target population is reached, and  may need to also be supplemented by changes in the structure of care provision.