Abstract
In the U.S., systemic discrimination in healthcare has contributed to health inequities in HIV/AIDS care among marginalized populations. Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men who have sex with men (BLMSM) face significant barriers accessing STI prevention programs and are consequently disproportionately affected by HIV. Treatment as Prevention (TasP), now known as Undetectable equals Untransmittable (U=U), is a bio-behavioral HIV prevention approach encouraging people with HIV to adhere to their HIV medications in order to reach an undetectable viral load and not transmit the virus to HIV-negative partners. Although TasP has been shown to prevent HIV transmission to uninfected individuals since 2011, awareness and knowledge regarding TasP use are still low among BLMSM. We created an interactive, culturally-tailored website that provides information about TasP and U=U. We conducted individual cognitive interviews with 10 HIV-negative and 10 HIV-positive BLMSM in New England to assess their understanding of the TasP/U=U information presented to them on the website. Each interview was audio-recorded, transcribed and analyzed thematically. Four major themes were identified: 1) awareness and knowledge of U=U and TasP were low among all participants before searching the website, 2) behavioral intentions toward TasP/U=U use differed based on HIV serostatus, 3) medical providers are not discussing TasP/ U=U with their MSM patients, and 4) participant awareness and knowledge increased after browsing the website. Public health interventions that include medical providers must focus on HIV prevention education regarding U=U and TasP among both HIV-negative and HIV-positive BLMSM to effectively minimize healthcare disparities and to foster health equity.
Presenters
Georgianna StoukidesStudent, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Candidate, New York Institute of Technology, New York, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Health Promotion and Education
KEYWORDS
Health equity, Education, HIV/AIDS, MSM, Capacity-building, PrEP, TasP, U=U
