Improving the distribution of antiretroviral medicines through centralised dispensing: perspectives of HIV+ patients and nurses at a chronic dispensing unit in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng Province, South Africa

INTRODUCTION: South Africa’s public healthcare facilities are continuously inundated with arduous challenges. A Chronic Dispensing Unit (CDU) can help to alleviate these challenges by reducing the workload of nurses at Primary Health Care clinics, decrease patient waiting time, and enhance accessibility of antiretroviral treatment (ART) for HIV+ patients through the dispensing, packaging, and distribution of chronic medicines to stable patients. Determining the effectiveness of a CDU is therefore critical as it can benefit both the patients and the CDU as a service provider. This study ascertained the efficiency of the Germiston CDU in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng Province, in distributing ART to clinics in order to make possible recommendations for quality improvement. No such study has so far been conducted at this CDU. METHODS: an exploratory quantitative research design was adopted. Data collection techniques consisted of researcher-assisted and self-administered questionnaires. The sample included 60 patients and 11 nurses who volunteered to participate in the study. RESULTS: main findings showed that patient participants believed there was a noteworthy reduction in patients’ waiting time at clinics. They were also highly satisfied with the CDU’s level of service delivery. Responses from nurse participants indicated an increase in accessibility of ART since the induction of the CDU. However, emerged challenges linked to CDU service delivery warrant a closer inspection of the CDU processes as it revealed shortfalls within the system that may hamper quality of service delivery. CONCLUSION: in general, services rendered by CDU were deemed effective. However, as a recommendation, challenges linked to CDU service delivery must be addressed.