Grant: Team Grant: HIV/AIDS and STBBI CBR - African, Caribbean and Black People

Everyone in Canada deserves the resources to take care of their health and thrive, but this is not the reality for many-especially Black Canadians who face systemic barriers such as racism, stigma, and limited access to culturally relevant healthcare. These barriers have led to significant health inequities. Although Black Canadians represent only 4% of the population, they account for about 25% of new HIV diagnoses in Ontario. HIV testing and prevention tools are not equally accessible, and gaps continue to grow. One highly effective prevention option is HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a medication that reduces HIV risk by over 99% when taken correctly. Despite its promise, PrEP uptake among Black Canadians remains very low. Recent national data show that only 5% of eligible Black Canadians are using PrEP, due to lack of awareness, stigma, and challenges in accessing medication. Our CIHR-funded community-based research team will work with Black communities, people with lived experience, healthcare providers, and Black-led organizations across Canada to change this. Our goal is to meaningfully engage and reach more than 10,000 Black and racialized Canadians over the next five years-across diverse backgrounds, genders, and sexual identities-to provide Black-centric and culturally appropriate access to HIV self-testing, prevention and support (including PrEP/PEP), confirmation testing, and HIV treatment and care through online and onsite healthcare providers. By combining technology, community leadership, and health system partnerships, we will create sustainable solutions to close the gap in HIV testing and prevention. This work will help reduce health disparities, improve outcomes, and move Canada closer to ending the HIV epidemic-while ensuring that Black Canadians are not left behind.