Sociocultural and structural influences on HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Engagement and Uptake among African American Young adults.

BACKGROUND: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) demonstrates effectiveness in decreasing new cases of HIV. However, few African Americans use PrEP, despite being disproportionately impacted by HIV. Understanding the influence of sociocultural and structural factors on PrEP use among multiple priority groups of African Americans, including but not limited to men who have sex with men, may improve PrEP engagement and uptake. The social ecological model (SEM) as a framework guided the understanding of how these factors operate on multiple levels to influence PrEP use among this population. METHODS: This study derived data from the Afya PrEP study consisting of eleven focus groups (N = 63) with 18-29-year-old African American sexual and gender minority and heterosexual individuals at heightened behavioral vulnerability to HIV. We employed constructivist grounded theory processes to inductively analyze the data. A pooled kappa score of 0.90 indicated excellent inter-rater agreement. RESULTS: Factors impacting PrEP engagement among African American young adults included: (1) Community/social network influences; (2) medical mistrust; (3) stigma; (4) PrEP availability and accessibility, which had two sub-categories: (a) cost and (b) where to obtain PrEP; and (5) PrEP engagement strategies, which had two sub-categories: (a) current AIDS service organizations' PrEP engagement practices and (b) recommended future PrEP engagement strategies. Categories one through three represent sociocultural factors, and categories four and five represent structural factors that influence perceptions and attitudes of African American young adults regarding PrEP. CONCLUSION: Our study highlights sociocultural and structural factors that act as barriers and facilitators to PrEP engagement. The SEM guided the understanding of how these factors operated on multiple levels. One of the sociocultural factors, community/social network influences operated at the interpersonal level of the SEM; the other two, stigma and medical mistrust, operated at the community level. The structural factors (PrEP availability, accessibility, and engagement strategies) operated at the institutional/organizational level. Thus, multi-level interventions are warranted to improve PrEP engagement among various African American young adult priority groups.

Understanding Influences on Intention to Use Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Among African American Young Adults.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a potent medication for HIV prevention, shows promise for reducing HIV disparities. However, PrEP is not equitably utilized by all races and ethnicities in the USA. Its uptake is especially low among African Americans, who are disproportionately impacted by HIV. Understanding factors influencing low PrEP uptake among diverse priority groups of African American young adults beyond gender and sexual minority groups (e.g., cisgender heterosexual people) may increase PrEP uptake. Data were from the Afya project, a study examining the use of PrEP for HIV prevention among multiple priority groups of African American young adults at heightened HIV risk, using Theory of Reasoned Action/Theory of Planned Behavior (TRA/TPB) as a theoretical framework. Eleven focus groups (N = 63) were conducted in Louisville, Kentucky from June to November 2018 with African American young adult priority groups (18-29 years old): men who have sex with men, transgender women, and cisgender heterosexual men and women demonstrating heightened sexual risk. Data were analyzed using constructivist grounded theory techniques. PrEP awareness, knowledge, perceived HIV risk and perceived need for PrEP (behavioral beliefs) and adherence beliefs (control beliefs), opinions of others (subjective norms), and confidence in ability to adhere to PrEP (perceived behavior controls) influenced acceptability of PrEP (participants' attitudes) and, in turn, influenced intention to use PrEP either negatively or positively. Thus, understanding factors that create reticence to PrEP use provides useful insight for tailoring outreach interventions towards African American young adults to improve PrEP uptake.

Addressing Health Insurance Literacy Gaps in an Urban African American Population: A Qualitative Study.

Health insurance and health systems literacy needs are evolving with changes to the U.S. healthcare system. Following the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, many residents in West Louisville, Kentucky, a predominantly African American community, gained health insurance coverage for the first time. A qualitative study was conducted to assess residents' health insurance and health systems needs and to identify ways of assisting residents with navigating the healthcare system and utilizing their health insurance coverage. Twelve focus groups were conducted with a total of eighty-seven residents. Round one explored participants' experiences with health insurance, and round two examined their health information delivery preferences. An inductive thematic analysis was performed. Participants revealed the complexity of the health insurance system, many citing difficulty understanding health insurance concepts and finding suitable healthcare providers. High costs, mistrust in the healthcare system, and perceived public-private disparities were barriers to effective health insurance utilization. Health insurance materials in their current form have limited value in translating health insurance and health systems information to the West Louisville population. Alternative forms of information delivery, such as locally accessible and culturally competent community health workers may be better received and more successfully utilized by the community.