Leveraging HIV programs to deliver an integrated package of health services: some words of caution.

Over the past decade, HIV programs have been successfully scaled up in many developing countries, leading some to wonder how the investments made into HIV infrastructure could be leveraged to deliver additional health services. Although the concept is appealing from many perspectives, integrating additional health services into existing vertical HIV infrastructure may not mitigate some of the challenges these programs have introduced in implementing countries. In addition, this approach to integration may countervail parallel efforts of the global health community to strengthen health systems and improve aid effectiveness. It might also undermine the HIV programs themselves. International donors and health system planners should carefully consider whether the benefits outweigh the potential costs of these well-intentioned integration efforts.