New HIV module to transform patient care

Fiji has launched a new digital HIV module within PATIS Plus, replacing manual record-keeping to improve patient care, disease surveillance and the country's response to HIV.

Minister for Health and Medical Services Dr Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu said the new system would modernise HIV service delivery through accurate, secure and integrated digital health records.

He made the announcement during the HIV Module Soft Launch and User Training at the Ministry of Health Headquarters in Suva today.

Dr Lalabalavu said Fiji's HIV information management had relied on manual processes for too long, creating challenges with data consistency, reporting delays, information security and monitoring of patient care.

"The introduction of this dedicated HIV module directly addresses these historic vulnerabilities," he said.

The new system will enable health workers to securely track patients, improve follow-up care and strengthen national disease surveillance.

It will also support evidence-based planning and provide valuable data to strengthen Fiji's long-term HIV response.

Senior Medical Officer for Sexual and Reproductive Health and HIV Services, Dr Dashika Anshu Balak, said the system would transform how people living with HIV were managed throughout their lives.

She said patients often received treatment at different health facilities, relocated around the country or missed appointments, forcing healthcare workers to reconstruct medical histories using paper files, phone calls and incomplete records.

Dr Balak said Fiji remained off track to achieve the global 95-95-95 HIV targets by 2030 and stressed that better data and patient tracking were essential to improving treatment outcomes.