Abstract
Frequent HIV testing among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBM) is a strategic priority for HIV prevention in Australia. To overcome barriers to testing in conventional clinical services, Australia recently introduced peer HIV rapid point of care (RPOC) testing services for GBM. This mixed methods evaluation describes client acceptability and HIV prevention benefits of a peer HIV testing model. Most aspects of the service model were overwhelmingly acceptable to clients. Two-thirds of survey participants reported preferring testing with peers rather than doctors or nurses and over half reported learning something new about reducing HIV risk. Focus group findings suggested peer-delivered HIV RPOC testing reduced stigma-related barriers to frequent testing and provided novel opportunities for GBM to openly discuss HIV prevention and sexual practices, enhancing their HIV risk-reduction knowledge. Analysis of survey data suggested knowledge transfer occurred particularly among younger and less gay community-attached GBM.
Highlights
Like much of the developed world [1], Australia has seen a resurgent HIV epidemic among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBM)
Findings indicate a high level of acceptability of the peer HIV testing model and broader HIV prevention benefits beyond those conveyed by the provision of a convenient service model for HIV testing
Our study findings demonstrate that peer-led HIV rapid point of care (RPOC) testing models are highly acceptable to Australian GBM and offer ancillary psychosocial HIV prevention benefits when compared to conventional clinical models of HIV testing
Summary
Like much of the developed world [1], Australia has seen a resurgent HIV epidemic among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBM). The Australian epidemic among GBM is disproportionately driven by the estimated 9–31% of HIV infections among GBM that remain undiagnosed [4,5,6], which may be responsible for at least half the new infections among GBM in Australia each year [7]. In keeping with the UNAIDS 90-90-90 target to end the global HIV/ AIDS epidemic by 2030 [8], Australia has placed a strategic emphasis on frequent HIV testing among GBM as the foundation of a strengthened cascade of care [9]. HIV testing recommendations in many countries are based on individual sexual and other risk [13,14,15,16]. For Australian GBM, barriers include the inconvenience and anxiety caused by waiting and returning for serology results at subsequent appointments, difficulties finding clinic appointments and discomfort discussing sexual history with doctors [21, 22]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
