<p><strong>STUDY OBJECTIVE: </strong>Botswana has a high pregnancy rate among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW). Long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) use among AGYW in Botswana is low, despite its high effectiveness for preventing pregnancy. Using an implementation science framework, we assessed barriers and facilitators to LARC implementation among AGYW in Botswana.</p>

<p><strong>DESIGN: </strong>Cross-sectional mixed methods.</p>

<p><strong>SETTING: </strong>Gaborone, Botswana.</p>

<p><strong>PARTICIPANTS: </strong>20 sexually active AGYW ages 18-24; 20 health system stakeholders.</p>

<p><strong>INTERVENTIONS: </strong>Surveys and semi-structured interviews grounded in the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR).</p>

<p><strong>MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: </strong>Themes reflecting barriers and facilitators of LARC implementation.</p>

<p><strong>RESULTS: </strong>The median age for AGYW was 22 (IQR 21-23). Twenty percent were using an implant and none had ever used an intrauterine device. Barriers and facilitators to LARC implementation spanned factors at each CFIR domain: 1) LARC characteristics like side effects; 2) the clinics' inner settings, including availability of youth-friendly services; 3) characteristics of health system stakeholders, such as LARC skills, and AGYW experiences, attitudes and beliefs about LARCs; 4) the outer setting external to clinics and Botswana's health system including reproductive health law and policy for minor adolescents; and 5) the implementation process level such as the availability of free or low-cost LARCs.</p>

<p><strong>CONCLUSIONS: </strong>We identified multi-level, context-specific factors that affect LARC implementation. Our findings can inform the development of interventions to increase LARC implementation in Botswana by addressing intersecting factors across patient, clinic, health system, and sociopolitical levels, such as providing confidential services to minors and improving LARC training and supply chain pipelines.</p>

High mortality among adolescents with HIV reflects delays and failures in the care cascade. We sought to elucidate critical missed opportunities and barriers to care among adolescents hospitalized with HIV at Botswana's tertiary referral hospital. We enrolled all HIV-infected adolescents (aged 10-19 years) hospitalized with any diagnosis other than pregnancy from July 2015 to January 2016. Medical records were reviewed for clinical variables and past engagement in care. Semi-structured interviews of the adolescents (when feasible) and their caregivers explored delays and barriers to care. Twenty-one eligible adolescents were identified and 15 were enrolled. All but one were WHO Clinical Stage 3 or 4. Barriers to diagnosis included lack of awareness about perinatal HIV infection, illness or death of the mother, and fear of discrimination. Barriers to adherence to antiretroviral therapy included nondisclosure, isolation, and mental health concerns. The number of hospitalized HIV-infected adolescents was lower than expected. However, among those hospitalized, the lack of timely diagnosis and subsequent gaps in the care cascade elucidated opportunities to improve outcomes and quality of life for this vulnerable group.