A new study conducted by the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) has found that equipping HIV patients with vocational skills significantly improves their adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART), highlighting the economic dimensions of healthcare outcomes in low-resource settings.

Presenting the findings at the institute’s monthly chat held at the NIMR facility in Yaba, a biostatistician and Senior Research Fellow at NIMR, Dr Kazeem Osuolale, explained that while ART has transformed HIV into a manageable chronic illness, adherence remains a challenge for many patients, primarily due to economic hardship. He said the study sought to address this by testing whether skill-based empowerment could support consistent treatment among people living with HIV.

According to him, poverty remains a major obstacle in Nigeria’s fight against HIV/AIDS, as many patients struggle to cover costs associated with accessing care, such as transportation, clinic registration, and other related expenses. “Even though the drugs are free, the financial burden of accessing them regularly makes adherence difficult for many patients,” he stated.

To explore a possible solution, the research team designed a pilot randomised controlled trial titled, “Empowerment Models for Improving Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Patients’ Adherence to Antiretroviral Drugs.”

The trial was conducted between July 2021, and February 2023, involving 50 HIV-positive patients between the ages of 15 and 45, all of whom had been on ART for at least three months, but had adherence rates below 95 per cent.

Participants were divided into two groups: an experimental group that received empowerment through vocational skills training and start-up materials, and a control group that received no such intervention.