Background: The HIV prevalence rate among pregnant women
is 37% in Botswana. According to UNICEF (2011), maternal and
under-5 mortality rates in Botswana were 160 per 100000 live
births and 26 per 1000 live births, respectively. Therefore, this
study sought to identify the effects of ongoing clinic audits of
the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) in
Francistown, Botswana for the period 2008–2012.
Methods: Existing data for all women attending antenatal and
postnatal clinics were collected and collated manually from
monthly from clinic PMTCT registers.
Results: There were 19720 new antenatal clinic visits between
2008 and 2012 with an HIV prevalence of 35% among the
women. Mother-to-child transmission of HIV decreased from 3%
in 2008 to 1% in 2012. The decrease was due, in part, to the
introduction of triple antiretroviral prophylaxis/antiretroviral
therapy (TAP/ARV) (PMTCT Option B) in 2011.
Conclusions: Audit results over a 5-year period showed a steady
improvement in the cascade of PMTCT interventions. Clinic
audits should be implemented nationally to reduce maternal and
under-5 mortality.