The HIV/AIDS epidemic continues to pose a threat to public health, economy, and indeed to national security in countries. The Government of Ghana has made a commitment to responding to this threat.

Comprehensive management of persons infected with HIV and AIDS patients has been shown to reduce mortality in addition to improving their quality of life of the infected. The continuum of care includes general specific medication for prevention and treatment of opportunistic infections and the use of Anti-retroviral Therapy. Clinical science and medical treatment has developed rapidly in this domain.

The Health Sector has the primary mandate of providing healthcare among ‘People living with HIV/AIDS’ (PLWHA). These guidelines are not intended towards providing ‘state of the art’ medical care, but rather a practical approach for management of HIV related illness. This includes criteria for initialisation of therapy, drug combinations on monitoring among others. It provides technical detail on drug interactions. It takes cognisance of the inadequate laboratory support that will ensure optimum monitoring. It also takes recognises the cost implications and therefore recommends drugs that are efficacious, with safe profiles and that are cost effective.

Even though primary and secondary prevention are not addressed in this document, it should be emphasised that these should form an integral part of patient management. Separate guidelines are available for the detailed management of Sexually Transmitted Infections and Management of Opportunistic Infections These are to complement each other in the comprehensive care of infected persons.

It is the hope of the Ghana Health Service that this and other guidelines will together provide adequate guidance to all providers in the clinical management of PLWHA’s, both in the public and private sectors and contribute to the improvement in the quality of life of infected individuals...