HIV and Nurses: A Focus Group on Task Shifting in Uganda

The HIV prevalence rate is 7.4% in Uganda, where the HIV-related President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and United Nations millennial development goals have not been met. This is partially due to a critical shortage of nurses and other health care providers. Task shifting is a World Health Organization strategy to address the shortage of human resources for health by shifting work from one cadre of health care worker to another, often less-trained, cadre. We conducted three focus groups with nurses in Uganda to better understand perceptions of their preparation for and implementation of task shifting. The focus group included nurses from diverse work settings. Data analysis revealed that nurses were proud of the work they were doing but were challenged by the lack of consistent and appropriate support. We found a need for additional policies, regulations, and consistent preparation for nurses who work in environments with task shifting.