Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

South Africa faces the largest HIV epidemic in the world. Within South Africa, HIV prevalence is disproportionately higher among women (26.3%) than men (14.8%), which is fueled by marked social and structural inequities. Within this regard, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) occurs at an alarming rate among women, and the experience of SGBV has not only been associated with HIV acquisition among this population, but it has also been shown to pose a challenge to the enactment of HIV prevention- and treatment-related behaviours (e.g., HIV testing, HIV treatment adherence). Given these linkages, and recognizing that shelter- and clinic-based services for SGBV in South Africa are limited, novel, community-informed intervention approaches are needed to provide accessible SGBV-related information, resources, and support to South African women who are living with or at risk for HIV. Accordingly, our proposed activities entail a series of meetings involving community stakeholders, shelter representatives, HIV care providers, and government officials, with the goal of achieving the following aims: 1) to explore the current landscape of SGBV-related services, and to discuss barriers to accessing support for SGBV among South African women who are living with or at risk for HIV; 2) to identify challenges to accessing HIV prevention, testing, and treatment among South African women who are experiencing SGBV; 3) to discuss novel, community-informed intervention approaches that could potentially be acceptable, feasible, and effective for connecting women who are experiencing SGBV to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment, as well as to support for SGBV; and 4) to synthesize and disseminate findings to stakeholders, and to collaboratively work toward the development of a community-informed, intervention-focused grant application. This work will catalyze a future collaborative effort aimed at reducing the intersecting burdens of SGBV and HIV among women in South Africa.