Tanzanian clients reached despite pandemic

A rapid response to adapt services to follow COVID-19 safety guidelines enabled the Tohara Plus team to provide voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) services to more than 186,000 men and boys in four northern regions of Tanzania in 2020. The project, which is led by IntraHealth and funded by the U.S. President’s Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was able to continue providing services during the COVID-19 pandemic at 71 sites in the regions of Shinyanga, Mara, Mwanza, and Simiyu. Client follow-ups were reviewed daily, and clients who missed their appointments were reached through their mobile phone numbers and reminded to reschedule. In 2020, 99 percent of clients returned for a post-circumcision follow-up appointment within 14 days, and almost 92 percent of clients returned for a second follow-up visit (IntraHealth International, 8 February 2021).