PrEP Chicago: A randomized controlled peer change agent intervention to promote the adoption of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention among young Black men who have sex with men

Abstract

PrEP Chicago addresses a gap in HIV prevention research and intervention design by utilizing the existing social networks among young Black men who have sex with men as mechanisms for information diffusion, behavioral influence, social support, and empowerment. Therefore, interventions that leverage peer influence processes to facilitate PrEP uptake are promising strategies to improve sexual health engagement and overcome disparities in outcomes among this at-risk population.

Perceptions of HIV transmission and pre-exposure prophylaxis among health care workers and community members in Rwanda

“…One of such strategies could include the use of peer educators which may facilitate acceptance and uptake. [ 27 ] For healthcare providers, promoting PrEP uptake and adoption may require implementation of evidence-based models. Furthermore, inclusion of guidance or guidelines that provide a template to inform clinical practice would be essential.…”

What’s PrEP?: peer navigator acceptability among minority MSM in Washington

“…Our findings suggest that peer navigation for PrEP among Black and Latinx MSM may be more acceptable to men if they share a similar sexual orientation with the navigatorin many cases, this orientation may be bisexual or fluid. One potential strategy would be to triage minority MSM with a recent STI diagnosis for peer navigation matched on sexual orientation for Although the evidence base is still limited, several ongoing studies will examine the role of peer leaders or change agents in efforts to increase PrEP knowledge and use among MSM of color [55,56]. In a cluster-randomized trial led by Patel et al in New York City, an intervention focusing on "empowering with PrEP" (E-PrEP) using PrEP-focused social media messaging disseminated by a peer leader will be compared to an E-Health online control in which participants receive no PrEP-specific or HIV-related information [55].…”

“…In a cluster-randomized trial led by Patel et al in New York City, an intervention focusing on "empowering with PrEP" (E-PrEP) using PrEP-focused social media messaging disseminated by a peer leader will be compared to an E-Health online control in which participants receive no PrEP-specific or HIV-related information [55]. In PrEP Chicago, the effectiveness of peer change agents recruited through social media networks and snowball sampling is being evaluated in an individual-level randomized trial evaluating outcomes including referrals to a PrEP informational hotline; PrEP knowledge, attitudes, and intention for use; and PrEP uptake among study participants [56]. Additional studies are needed to evaluate peer approaches in other settings, especially in areas such as western Washington in which minority communities are more dispersed and face significant barriers to accessing culturally tailored care.…”

A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study of a Culturally-Tailored Counseling Intervention to Increase Uptake of HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Among Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men in Washington, DC

“…Hosek et al evaluated a 2-day group-based behavioral intervention and individual risk reduction counseling in 58 MSM aged 18 to 22 years old, 93% of whom were of color, and found a high level of acceptance [24]. An ongoing study by Young et al aims to evaluate social network interventions on PrEP uptake in young BM SM by using trained BM SM as peer change agents [25]. Our model is similar to this study in that the counseling in the intervention group was performed by someone of the same race, gender and sexual orientation as our participants.…”