Research
Active Studies
Linking Youth to PrEP Services (LYPS) is an innovative mobile delivery and mHealth intervention to optimize PrEP adherence and persistence among young gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men and transgender women in 4 US cities. Participants will receive PrEP care in a community setting that is paired with a mobile app to support PrEP care between care visits. A 2-arm randomized controlled trial will be conducted to assess the impact of the LYPS intervention compared to a usual PrEP care arm, as well as cost-effectiveness of this approach.
Funding: National Institute of Child and Human Development UM2 HD111102
MIC-DROP aims to understand men’s preferences for prevention products and strategies, and what choices are being made by men with varying risk profiles, we will enroll a prospective cohort of 1275 of men who have sex with men (MSM) in Atlanta, Chicago, and San Diego and follow the cohort for 2 years.
Funding: National Center for HIVAIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (5U01PS00524)
Supporting treatment adherence for resilience and thriving (START) is a mobile app study to help men living with HIV develop positive affect skills and ways to manage their HIV more effectively. Optimizing treatment as prevention (also known as “U=U”) for men living with HIV is a priority of the National Institutes of Health, and the START study may be an important advancement to reaching U=U goals.
Funding: National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA049843)
In eSTEP (Electronic Support To Engage with PrEP), we aim to develop an effective, accessible, and sustainable mHealth PrEP care continuum intervention for gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) and transgender women (TW). The eSTEP WebApp will be tailored to the unique needs of TW and GBMSM through an iterative series of focus groups and community advisory board meetings to develop a set of interactive components delivered before in-person HIV testing and after the participant tests HIV-negative and agrees to start PrEP.
Funding: National Institute of Mental Health (R34MH129279-01A1)
LinkPositively is a technology-delivered peer navigation and social networking intervention to improve HIV care across the continuum for black women affected by interpersonal violence. Core components of LinkPositively include: (a) Virtual Peer Navigation that includes phone and text check-ins and 4 weekly one-on-one video sessions; (b) Social Networking platform to receive peer support; (c) EducatedPositively database with self-care and healthy living tips; and (d) GPS-enabled Resource Locator for HIV and ancillary support service agencies.
Funding: National Institute of Mental Health R34MH122014
Completed Studies
In PrEP iT! , we will pilot test a mobile web-based app to optimize PrEP adherence and retention in PrEP care among young adult (18-29 year old) sexual minority men who are prescribed PrEP. The app will contain a community wall for participants to communicate and support each other, tailored PrEP and sexual risk reduction information, an “ask the expert” feature, and PrEP adherence self-monitoring with follow-up when adherence appears to be waning.
Funding: National Institute of Mental Health R34MH116878
PrEP Options, Exploring Messages to Plan for Sex (POEMS) is a study to understand how young men usually plan for safe sex. We want to learn if we can help by creating tools to help them choose what type of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) dosing option is best for them. There are a lot of ways to reduce your chances of getting HIV, but one of the most effective strategies is PrEP. Young men aged 16-24 years old will take part in an 8-week study that involves two surveys and daily short surveys. Next, focus groups will be held to inform intervention design for different dosing options, with a particular focus on “on-demand” PrEP strategies.
Funding: National Institute of Mental Health R21MH124678
In this study, we propose a two-arm, technology-based randomized controlled trial (RCT), with a stepped care approach, among high-risk HIV-negative trans* youth for reducing sexual risk behaviors (e.g. condomless anal intercourse, engagement in sex work, sex while feeling the effects of alcohol or drugs) and increasing PrEP uptake.
Funding: National Institute of Child and Human Development U24 HD089880
An adaptation of “Thrive With Me,” YouTHrive has been adapted for HIV positive youth of all genders between the ages of 15-24 with a detectable viral load (VL), delivering peer-to-peer social support, tailored HIV informational content, monitoring ART adherence, and motivational goal setting.
Funding: National Institute of Child and Human Development U19 HD089881
HiSTEP is a pilot study in Kampala, Uganda assessed the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary impact of a novel HIV self-testing (HIVST) intervention with 2 primary components: (1) an established 24-hour call-in center staffed by medical providers who deliver accurate HIV/STI information, perform pre- and post-test counseling, assist with conducting HIVST and interpretation of results, and referral for post-test prevention and treatment care; (2) the use of SMS and social media streams (e.g., Facebook Messenger) to “push” theoretically-grounded messages that promote HIVST and provide additional private communication routes between participants and medical provider research staff.
Funding: National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA049843)
To promote advancements in technology-based HIV prevention and care, our team has conducted research testing a smartphone app to promote regular HIV testing. The app also includes regular assessment of sexual risk behavior; tailored recommendations for the frequency of HIV testing based on individual risk patters; and a GPS-enabled HIV testing location finder.
Funding: National Institute of Mental Health R34MH105202
APP+ was created to identify and create a mobile technology application that would improve ART adherence among HIV+ stimulant-using men who have sex with men. The app included daily reminders, harm reduction tips, medication adherence tracking tool, and Choose Your Own Adventure vignettes.
Funding: National Institute on Drug Abuse R34DA033833
To address the needs of HIV-positive MSM, our team and the team at PRIDE NYC developed and piloted the “Thrive with Me” or (TWM) peer-to-peer social support intervention to improve ART adherence. Participants were given options for self-monitoring ART adherence, receiving ART dose reminders, and viewing relevant online HIV informational content.
Funding: National Institute on Drug Abuse R01 DA039950