scholarly journals Integration of Gender-Affirming Primary Care and Peer Navigation With HIV Prevention and Treatment Services to Improve the Health of Transgender Women: Protocol for a Prospective Longitudinal Cohort Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier R Lama ◽  
Kenneth H Mayer ◽  
Amaya G Perez-Brumer ◽  
Leyla Huerta ◽  
Hugo Sanchez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Hormone Therapy ◽  
Transgender Women ◽  
Treatment Services ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
Gender Affirmation ◽  
Peer Navigation ◽  
Living With Hiv

BACKGROUND Public health strategies are urgently needed to improve HIV disparities among transgender women, including holistic intervention approaches that address those health needs prioritized by the community. Hormone therapy is the primary method by which many transgender women medically achieve gender affirmation. Peer navigation has been shown to be effective to engage and retain underserved populations living with HIV in stable primary medical care. OBJECTIVE This study aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of an integrated innovative HIV service delivery model designed to improve HIV prevention and care by combining gender-affirming primary care and peer navigation with HIV prevention and treatment services. METHODS A 12-month, nonrandomized, single-arm cohort study was implemented in Lima, Peru, among adult individuals, assigned a male sex at birth, who identified themselves as transgender women, regardless of initiation or completion of medical gender affirmation, and who were unaware of their HIV serostatus or were living with HIV but not engaged in HIV treatment. HIV-negative participants received quarterly HIV testing and were offered to initiate pre-exposure prophylaxis. HIV-positive participants were offered to initiate antiretroviral treatment and underwent quarterly plasma HIV-1 RNA and peripheral CD4+ lymphocyte cell count monitoring. All participants received feminizing hormone therapy and adherence counseling and education on their use. Peer health navigation facilitated retention in care by visiting participants at home, work, or socialization venues, or by contacting them by social media and phone. RESULTS Patient recruitment started in October 2016 and finished in March 2017. The cohort ended follow-up on March 2018. Data analysis is currently underway. CONCLUSIONS Innovative and culturally sensitive strategies to improve access to HIV prevention and treatment services for transgender women are vital to curb the burden of HIV epidemic for this key population. Findings of this intervention will inform future policies and research, including evaluation of its efficacy in a randomized controlled trial. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03757117; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03757117 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPOR DERR1-10.2196/14091

scholarly journals High levels of mild to moderate depression among men who have sex with men and transgender women in Lima, Peru: implications for integrated depression and HIV care

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerome T. Galea ◽  
Stephanie Marhefka ◽  
Segundo R. León ◽  
Guitele Rahill ◽  
Elena Cyrus ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Transgender Women ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
Depression Care ◽  
Care Services ◽  
Treatment Services ◽  
Moderate Depression ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
Patient Health ◽  
Sex With Men

ABSTRACTDepression disproportionally affects people at risk of acquiring or living with HIV and is associated with worse health outcomes; however, depression care is not routinely integrated with HIV prevention and treatment services. Selection of the best depression intervention(s) for integration depends both on the prevalence and severity of depression among potential users. To inform depression care integration in a community-based setting in Lima, Peru, we retrospectively analyzed routinely collected depression screening data from men who have sex with men and transgender women seeking HIV prevention and care services (N=185). Depression was screened for using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Prevalence of any depression (PHQ-9 ≥5) was 42% and was significantly associated with the last sexual partner being “casual” (p=0.01). Most (81%) depressive symptoms were mild to moderate (≥5 PHQ-9 ≤14). Integrating depression care with HIV prevention and treatment services in Peru should begin by implementing interventions targeting mild to moderate depression.

scholarly journals Perceived Barriers and Facilitators to Integrating HIV Prevention and Treatment with Cross-Sex Hormone Therapy for Transgender Women in Lima, Peru

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 3299-3311 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sari L. Reisner ◽  
Amaya G. Perez-Brumer ◽  
Sarah A. McLean ◽  
Javier R. Lama ◽  
Alfonso Silva-Santisteban ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Hormone Therapy ◽  
Transgender Women ◽  
Sex Hormone ◽  
Perceived Barriers ◽  
Barriers And Facilitators ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

scholarly journals Potential interruptions in HIV prevention and treatment services for gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men associated with COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amrita Rao ◽  
Katherine Rucinski ◽  
Brooke Jarrett ◽  
Benjamin Ackerman ◽  
Sara Wallach ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Morbidity And Mortality ◽  
Treatment Services ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
Living With Hiv

Background Globally, the coronavirus pandemic has necessitated a range of population-based measures in order to stem the spread of infection and reduce COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality. These measures may be associated with disruptions to other health services including for gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) at risk for or living with HIV. Here, we assess the relationship between stringency of COVID-19 mitigation strategies and interruptions to HIV prevention and treatment services for MSM. Methods Data for this study were collected as part of a COVID-19 Disparities Survey implemented by the gay social networking app Hornet, with data collected between April 16th, 2020 and May 24th, 2020. Data were assessed for countries where at least 50 participants completed the survey, to best evaluate country-level heterogeneity. We used a modified Poisson regression model, with clustering at the country-level, to assess the association between stringency of pandemic control measures and access to HIV services. Pandemic control measures were quantified using the Oxford Government Response Tracker Stringency Index; each country received a score (0-100) based on the number and strictness of nine indicators related to school and workplace closures and travel bans. Results A total of 10,654 MSM across 20 countries were included in these analyses. The mean age was 34.2 (standard deviation: 10.8), and 12% (1264/10540) of participants reported living with HIV. The median stringency score was 82.31 (Range:[19.44, Belarus]-[92.59, Ukraine]). For every ten-point increase in stringency, there was a 3% reduction in the prevalence of access to in-person testing (aPR: 0.97, 95% CI:[0.96, 0.98]), a 6% reduction in the prevalence of access to self-testing (aPR: 0.94, 95% CI:[0.93, 0.95]), and a 5% reduction in access to PrEP (aPR: 0.95, 95% CI:[0.95, 0.97]). Among those living with HIV, close to one in five (n=218/1105) participants reported being unable to access their provider either in-person or via telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a greater proportion of interruptions to treatment services reported in Belarus and Mexico. Almost half (n=820/1254) reported being unable to refill their HIV medicine prescription remotely. Conclusions More stringent government responses were associated with decreased access to HIV diagnostic, prevention, and treatment services. To minimize increases in HIV-related morbidity and mortality, innovative strategies are needed to facilitate minimize service interruptions to MSM communities during this and potential future waves of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Availability of HIV prevention and treatment services for people who inject drugs: findings from 21 countries

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaino Petersen ◽  
Bronwyn Myers ◽  
Marie-Claire van Hout ◽  
Andreas Plüddemann ◽  
Charles Parry
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Treatment Services ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

scholarly journals Mobile Health App for Self-Learning on HIV Prevention Knowledge and Services Among a Young Indonesian Key Population: Cohort Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priyanka Rani Garg ◽  
Leena Uppal ◽  
Sunil Mehra ◽  
Devika Mehra
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Hiv Prevention ◽  
Mobile Health ◽  
Drug Users ◽  
Transgender Women ◽  
Asia Pacific ◽  
People Who Use Drugs ◽  
Key Populations ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
Self Learning

BACKGROUND Indonesia is the only country in the Asia Pacific region where the incidence of HIV is still on the rise, and its prevalence is extremely high among the key populations such as men who have sex with men, transgender women, and people who inject/use drugs. Mobile health (mHealth) apps provide an innovative platform for delivering tailored HIV prevention and care among these populations more efficiently than possible through the direct face-to-face approach. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess the role of a peer-customized mobile app based on the principle of self-learning for improving HIV prevention knowledge and access to health services among men who have sex with men, transgender women (known as Waria in Indonesia), and people who use drugs in Indonesia. METHODS A prospective intervention cohort study was conducted among the key populations in five provinces of Indonesia (Jakarata, West Java, East Java, Special Region of Yogyakarta, and Bali). The data were evaluated using a pre-post assessment survey conducted on a sample of 200 unique users, including 50 men who have sex with men and transgender women each, and 100 people who use drugs, with a follow-up response rate of 98% and 70%, respectively. An mHealth app named RUMAH SELA was developed and implemented among the key populations. RESULTS From baseline to the endpoint of the study, there was a significant increase in comprehensive HIV-related knowledge from 20% (10/49) to 60% (29/49), 22% (11/49) to 57% (28/49), and 49% (34/70) to 74% (52/70) among men who have sex with men (<i>P</i>=.004), transgender women (<i>P</i>&lt;.001), and people who use drugs (<i>P</i>&lt;.001), respectively. There was also a reduction in sexual activities without condom use from 22% (11/49) to 19% (9/49), 18% (9/49) to 12% (6/49), and 21% (15/70) to 10% (7/70) among men who have sex with men (<i>P</i>=.45), transgender women (<i>P</i>=.25), and people who use drugs (<i>P</i>&lt;.001), respectively. There was an uptake of HIV testing by 31% (15/49) for men who have sex with men, 49% (24/49) for transgender women, and 26% (18/70) for people who use drugs after using the app. There was a reduction in injecting drugs with a used needle in drug users from 45/70 (78%) to 15/70 (26%). Measures of self-esteem increased among men who have sex with men (mean 26.4 vs mean 27.1), transgender women (mean 26.5 vs mean 27.8; <i>P</i>=.02), and people who use drugs (mean 24.0 vs mean 25.0). In addition, 27% (7/24) of men who have sex with men, 25% (4/15) of transgender women, and 11% (2/18) of drug users made an appointment for an HIV test through the app. The app was quite highly accepted by the key populations as nearly a quarter felt that they became more confident in discussing issues about sexuality, more than 80% found that the app provided sufficient knowledge about HIV, and more than half of the participants found the app to be user friendly. CONCLUSIONS This one-of-a-kind mHealth intervention with an mHealth app as a self-learning tool is effective in increasing HIV-related knowledge and behavior, and access to services with strong acceptability by the community. There is a need to scale up such interventions for efficacy testing in a larger population to provide evidence for national-level mHealth programs addressing HIV.

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