Job Title: Locum ART Counselor (1 position)
Report to: Clinic Manager
Supervises: None
Duty Station: Mulago ISS Clinic

Job summary: To provide psychosocial and adherence support to people living with HIV to ensure they initiate, adhere to, and remain on antiretroviral therapy (ART), achieve viral load suppression, and maintain a good quality of life.

Roles and responsibilities:

1. Provide routine adherence counselling to patients at every clinic visit to promote consistent medication use.
2. Provide enhanced counselling to patients with unsuppressed viral loads to address barriers to adherence and support viral load suppression.
3. Educate patients on HIV, ART, the importance of lifelong treatment, proper medication use, and the benefits of viral load monitoring.
4. Viral Load Monitoring: Identify patients due for viral load testing, provide pre-test counselling, and support timely sample collection and follow-up of results.
5. Identify and address psychosocial challenges affecting treatment adherence, including stigma, depression, disclosure concerns, and family-related challenges.
6. Support interventions aimed at reducing missed appointments, treatment interruptions, and loss to follow-up.
7. Support patients enrolled in different ART delivery models to ensure continuity of treatment and adherence.
8. Maintain accurate counselling records, document adherence challenges, track IAC sessions, and report on counselling outcomes.
9. Support newly diagnosed patients through counselling, ART initiation, and linkage to appropriate HIV care services.
10. Health Education: Conduct group health talks on ART adherence, prevention of HIV transmission, positive living, and treatment outcomes.

Key expected results of an ARV Counsellor

• Improved ART adherence among patients.
• Increased viral load suppression.
• Improved patient retention in care.
• Reduced treatment interruptions and loss to follow-up.
• Timely identification and management of patients with unsuppressed viral loads.
• Improved patient understanding of HIV treatment.
• Increased uptake of viral load testing.

Qualifications and job specifications

• Diploma in Nursing or Diploma in Clinical and Community Health from a recognized institution
• Certificate in HIV/AIDS counseling and antiretroviral therapy is an added advantage
• At least two (2) years relevant experience in a busy
• HIV/AIDS care, counseling and support techniques
• Empathetic with high level of integrity and confidentiality
• Good counseling and health education skills with good interpersonal and communication skills

MJAP is dedicated to inclusion and diversity, evaluating all job applicants solely based on merit, regardless of race,
gender, color, national origin, religion, age, marital status, or disability. As an equal opportunity employer, MJAP
does not charge applicants at any stage and is not responsible for losses from fraudulent recruitment activities.  All suitably qualified candidates are encouraged to apply by clearly stating the position applied for in the Subject line.
Combine all your application documentation, i.e. cover letter, CV & academic documents, into one PDF with
names/contact details of three referees including the immediate Supervisor addressed to: The Human
Resources Manager, Makerere University Joint AIDS Program (MJAP). Email: recruitment@mjap.mak.ac.ug NOT later than Thursday, 19th November 2026, at 3:00 pm. For details about advertised position, please visit the website of Makerere University Joint AIDS Program. Consider your application unsuccessful if you don’t hear from us by 15th December 2026. Offer of employment will be subject to satisfactory references including but not limited to appropriate background checks, criminal records, and previous employment findings of fraud, corruption, sexual exploitation, abuse or harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By applying, the  job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures. Please ensure that your attachments do not exceed 25 MB. We do appreciate your interest in working with MJAP, however, we regret that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interview