Restoring Life and Hope at Mkoba Polyclinic: How THRIVE AHD Community Champions Kept a Vulnerable Mother and Child on Treatment
In September 2025, a mother brought her young child to Mkoba Polyclinic in Zimbabwe with severe acute malnutrition, significant weight loss, poor feeding, oral thrush, and a swollen abdomen. Born outside a health facility in March 2024, the child had missed early infant HIV diagnosis and the opportunity for timely treatment. Clinical testing confirmed that both mother and child were living with HIV, while further investigation revealed that the child also had tuberculosis (TB).
The diagnosis marked the beginning of an already difficult journey for the 23-year-old mother. Following the diagnosis, the child's father declined HIV testing and left the family, leaving her to manage her child's complex health needs amid severe food insecurity and limited family support.
The child was admitted to the district hospital and initiated on antiretroviral therapy (ART), TB treatment, antibiotics, and emergency nutritional support. While these interventions were essential to stabilizing the child's health, ensuring continued treatment and recovery would require support beyond the hospital.
Long-term survival depended on whether the child’s mother, with little support around her, could sustain care at home.
This is where the Unitaid-funded THRIVE Project helped bridge the gap between clinical care and the realities families face at home. Led by CHAI in partnership with AFROCAB and Penta, the THRIVE Project works to deliver life-saving care to people living with advanced HIV disease (AHD), with AFROCAB leading the project’s community engagement.
At Mkoba Polyclinic, the dedicated THRIVE AHD Champions and community facilitators played a pivotal, transformative role. Recognizing that the mother was at extreme risk of dropping out of care due to trauma, partner abandonment, and economic hardship, the Champions stepped in as her primary support system. They provided continuous, compassionate adherence counseling and treatment literacy, helping the young mother process her diagnosis, overcome the shock of her partner’s departure, and understand the critical importance of daily medication for both her and her child.
When the mother initially declined home visits because of concerns about stigma in her community, the Champions adapted their approach. Rather than risk losing contact with the family, they arranged discreet follow-up at the clinic, respecting her preferences while ensuring she remained connected to care. Recognizing that a malnourished child’s recovery depends on nutrition, they also secured food support for the household, easing acute hunger while the child continued their treatment.
Read more about the importance of nutrition in HIV care and how THRIVE is working to address nutritional challenges and improve health outcomes here.
When the mother later relocated, the Champions helped coordinate a referral to a health facility in her new community and maintained remote contact to support uninterrupted treatment and medication refills.
The turning point was driven by the mother’s growing resolve, anchored by the constant presence and encouragement of the Champions. With consistent treatment adherence and nutritional support, the child completed TB treatment, achieved viral suppression, and gained weight. The child remains on treatment, is feeding well, and is thriving.
Equally inspiring is the mother’s trajectory, as she secured employment as a domestic worker and now provides for her family independently. Despite the challenges she has faced, both she and her child remain engaged in HIV care.
Her journey highlights a fundamental truth in pediatric HIV care: effective treatment requires more than access to medicines; patients also need ongoing support to stay on treatment, proving that empathetic, community-led support from dedicated Champions can keep even the most vulnerable families on treatment and turn a life-threatening crisis into a story of resilience and health.
Through the generous support of Unitaid, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI)-led THRIVE Project is enabling access to critical prevention, screening, and treatment commodities for advanced HIV disease to dramatically reduce mortality among adults and children living with HIV. The THRIVE project is conducted in partnership with AFROCAB and Penta.
Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of AFROCAB and do not necessarily reflect those of Unitaid or other partners.
