Woman to Woman (W2W): Adapting an HIV risk reduction intervention for older women

Abstract

Woman to Woman (W2W) is a novel adaptation of the Sisters Informing Sisters about Topics on AIDS (SISTA) HIV prevention program. This article describes the process of adapting and piloting W2W based on recommendations from existing HIV prevention research. Six older women, all of whom had histories of homelessness and the majority of whom identified as African American, enrolled in the study, which piloted the adapted intervention and materials, evaluated the acceptability of the program, and assessed the measures related to the intervention. Participants described satisfaction with the program and had high rates of attendance; observations regarding the measures suggest the need to further develop assessments of HIV knowledge, condom use self-efficacy, and risk behaviors in this context.

“I Don’t Know and I Don’t Want to Know”: A Qualitative Examination of Older African American Women’s Knowledge and Experiences With HIV

“…Older African American women, in fact, desire such information. For example, Conner et al (2018) found in an evaluation of the feasibility of a pilot HIV intervention that older women were satisfied with an explicit focus of the intervention on HIV knowledge. In the focus groups we convened, many women asked for an additional session in which they could learn more about HIV.…”

“…Culturally tailored HIV messages and programs are needed to address sociocultural factors unique to this population (Conner et al, 2018). For example, messages might discuss the stigma of sexuality and ageism and how this relates to HIV protective behaviors.…”

“…However, older men and women have less knowledge than younger individuals about HIV risk and protective factors and HIV transmission (Burlew, 2007; Conner et al, 2018). For instance, Ross, Humble, and Blum (2013) found that most older women taking an HIV knowledge assessment got just more than 50% of questions correct.…”

“…The goal of this study was to gain a better understanding of older African American women’s lived experiences and knowledge concerning HIV. While research has shown that knowledge is lower among older compared with younger African American women, less is known about why knowledge is low, the content of this knowledge, and other experiences related to HIV (Burlew, 2007; Conner, Engstrom, Junious, & Edwards-Knight, 2018). We conducted focus groups to learn from older African American women what they know and do not know about HIV.…”

Evaluating HIV Educational Materials for Older People

“…2 Targeting this group with tailored, aging-specific educational materials can increase awareness and reduce stigma associated with HIV. 3…”