Background

Since 2014, the RTCQI (Rapid Test Continuous Quality Improvement) Program has been implemented at different levels in countries under the support of PEPFAR. The Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC), International Laboratory Branch (ILB) is organizing this workshop, in partnership with AFENET, to convene RTCQI country stakeholders to share best practices and lessons learned on RTCQI implementation across PEPFAR-supported countries as well as tools available for analyzing and using RTCQI data. This workshop invited representatives from PEPFAR-supported countries implementing RTCQI in the Western Hemisphere Region and selected countries in African Region.

Workshop Objectives

• Countries to present best practices on 1) tester certification, 2) test site certification, 3) PT program, 4) kit quality post-market surveillance, 5) data collection and utilizations for continuous quality improvement, and 6) testing strategies.
• Demonstrations and country showcase of eTools for managing and analyzing RTCQI data, including ePT, SPI-RRT dashboard, Tester certification dashboard, HTS logbook data management tool, and other eTools.
• Discussion on country RTCQI implementation plan and roadmap for development of country quality assurance framework.

Expected Workshop Outcomes

• Facilitate cross-country experience sharing on RTCQI implementation/impact and data use.
• Raise awareness among countries about RTCQI eTools and their practical applications.
• Identify common challenges and propose solutions where possible.
• Country to share implementation plans for next steps.
• Official launching of the RTCQI website.

Participants

Representatives from MOH, CDC DGHT country office, and country implementing partners who are responsible for quality assurance and improvement of HIV rapid diagnostic testing.

Day 1: August 26, 2024 - RTCQI Overview & Testing Strategy

Time	Session	Topic	Facilitator(s)	Downloads
08:30 - 09:15	Registration	Registration of all participants	-
09:15 - 09:30	Opening	Welcome remarks	Pedro Contreras (Panama MOH), CDC, WHO/PAHO
09:30 - 10:00	Introductions	Introductions of country delegation Review of workshop objectives and agenda Housekeeping	Ernest Yufenyuy (CDC, Atlanta), AFENET
10:00 - 10:30	Activity	Group Photo	AFENET
10:30 - 11:00	Tea/Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:00	Presentation	1.1 PEPFAR’s vision on RTCQI (20 min) 1.2 RTCQI Overview (20 min) Q&A (20 min)	George Alemnji (GHSD/PEPFAR), Xiaojuan Tan (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Ernest Yufenyuy
12:00 - 12:50	Presentation	1.3 Testing strategy to ensure the quality of diagnosis (30 min) Q&A (20 min)	Alaleh Abadpour (WHO, Geneva), Emanny Sanchez (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Sandra Juarez Garrido (CDC, Central America)
12:50 - 13:50	Lunch
13:50 - 15:20	Country Presentation & Discussion	1.4 Country experience sharing on testing strategy (15 min/country, 4 countries) Discussion (30 min)	Country representatives: El Salvador, Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria Moderator: Emanny Sanchez
15:20 - 15:50	Tea/Coffee Break with eTool Open Booth Discussion
15:50 - 17:35	Country Presentation & Discussion	1.5 Implementation and scale-up of RTCQI (15 min/country, 5 countries) Discussion (30 min)	Country representatives: Brazil, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Panama, South Africa Moderator: Floris Wray-Gordon (CDC, Atlanta)

Day 2: August 27, 2024 - QA Framework, Testing in Non-Conventional Setting, Logbook, and Tester Certification

Time	Session	Topic	Facilitator(s)	Downloads
08:30 - 08:40	Recap	Review of Day 1	Volunteer
08:40 - 09:30	Country Presentation & Discussion	2.1 Country HIV diagnostic quality assurance framework (15 min/country, 2 countries) Discussion (20 min)	Country representatives: Ethiopia, Malawi Moderator: Alarice Marsh (South Africa MOH)
09:30 - 10:50	Country Presentation & Discussion	2.2 Ensure the quality of testing in non-conventional setting (15 min/country, 4 countries) Discussion (20 min)	Country representatives: Guatemala, Honduras, Trinidad, Nigeria Moderator: Sandra Juarez Garrido
10:50 - 11:20	Tea/Coffee Break with eTool Open Booth Discussion
11:20 - 12:10	Presentation	2.3 Using standard Logbook Logbook Data Management Tool Demo Q&A (20 min)	Xiaojuan Tan (CDC, Atlanta), Amitabh Adhikari (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Nora Hennesy (CDC, Atlanta)
12:10 - 13:10	Lunch
13:10 - 13:40	Discussion	Discussion - using standard Logbook	Moderator: Chrystiam Sorondo Ambrosino (CDC, DR)
13:40 - 15:00	Country Presentation & Discussion	2.5 Overview of tester certification program (15 min/country, 4 countries) Discussion (20 min)	Country representatives: El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama Moderator: Giselle Guevara (CDC, Caribbean)
15:00 - 16:00	Presentation	2.6 eTools for tester certification Q&A (20 min)	Alarice Marsh (South Africa MOH), Amitabh Adhikari (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Madelyn Baez-Santiago (CDC, Atlanta)
16:00 - 17:30	Visit country booth & Tea/Coffee break

Day 3: August 28, 2024 - Proficiency Testing & Kit Quality Monitoring

Time	Session	Topic	Facilitator(s)	Downloads
08:30 - 08:40	Recap	Review of Day 2	Volunteer/Moderator
08:40 - 10:25	Country Presentation & Discussion	3.1 Overview of country PT program (15 min/country, 4 countries) Discussion (30 min)	Country representatives: Brazil, El Salvador, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama Moderator: Floris Wray-Gordon (CDC, Atlanta)
10:25 - 11:05	Presentation	3.2 ePT tool Q&A (20 min)	Amitabh Adhikari (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Xiaojuan Tan
11:05 - 11:35	Tea/Coffee Break with eTool Open Booth Discussion
11:35 - 13:25	Country Presentation & Discussion	3.3 Manage and Use PT data (15 min/country, 6 countries) Q&A (20 min)	Country representatives: Brazil, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad, Kenya Moderator: Giselle Guevara
13:25 - 14:25	Lunch
14:25 - 15:10	Presentation	3.4 Monitoring the quality of test kit Q&A (15 min)	Ashini Fernando (USAID/FHI360) Moderator: Madelyn Baez Santiago (CDC, Atlanta)
15:10 - 16:00	Country Presentation & Discussion	3.5 Experience sharing on kit quality monitoring (15min/country, 2 countries) Discussion (20 min)	Country representatives: El Salvador, Cote d’Ivoire Moderator: Ashini Fernando
16:00 - 17:30	Visit country booth & Tea/Coffee break

Day 4: August 29, 2024 - Site Certification

Time	Session	Topic	Facilitator(s)	Downloads
08:30 - 08:40	Recap	Review of Day 3	Volunteer/Moderator
08:40 - 08:55	Presentation	4.1 Refresher of site monitoring	Floris Wray-Gordon (CDC Atlanta)
08:55 - 09:30	Presentation	4.2 SPI-RRT dashboard Q&A (15 min)	Amitabh Adhikari (CDC, Atlanta) Moderator: Glavdia Delva (CDC, Haiti)
09:30 - 10:35	Country Presentation & Discussion	4.3 Implementation and good practices on site monitoring toward certification (15 min/country, 3 countries) Q&A (20 min)	Country representatives: El Salvador, Côte d'Ivoire, Nigeria Moderator: Fred Bangara (CDC, Malawi)
10:35 - 11:05	Tea/Coffee Break with eTool Open Booth Discussion
11:05 - 11:55	Country Presentation & Discussion	4.4 Good practices on collection, management, and use of site monitoring data (15 min/country, 2 countries) Discussion (20 min)	Country representatives: Jamaica, Malawi Moderator: Raphael St Vil (CDC, Haiti)
11:55 - 12:30	Discussion	Parking Lot questions	Moderator: Ernest Yufenyuy
12:30 - 13:30	Lunch
13:30 - 13:40	Demo	Demonstration of RTCQI website	Madelyn Baez-Santiago (CDC Atlanta)
13:40 - 14:10	Discussion	Opportunities to extend RTCQI concept to other POC diagnostic tests.	Moderator: Ernest Yufenyuy
14:10 - 14:40	Group Discussion	Group Discussion – Next Step	Grouped by country
14:40 - 15:10	Tea/Coffee Break with eTool Open Booth Discussion
15:10 - 15:50	Presentation	Key Take Away Message	Ernest Yufenyuy (CDC, Atlanta)
15:50 - 16:20	Wrap-up session	Poster award Logistics Final survey Closing Remarks	Linda Fleming (CDC, Atlanta), George Alemnji (GHSD/PEPFAR), Ernest Yufenyuy (CDC Atlanta)

Day 5: August 30, 2024 - Regional/Country Meetings

Time	Session	Topic	Facilitator(s)	Downloads
08:30 - 12:00	Regional/country consultation meetings	Lab Advisors	-
12:00 - 13:00	Lunch