Grant: Catalyst Grant: HIV/AIDS CBR Program - General Stream

Despite decades of traditional prevention work based on behaviour change and condoms, unacceptably high rates of HIV transmission persist in Canada, with a disproportionate burden among African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) communities. To address these challenges, there is increasing interest in new biomedical HIV prevention technologies (NPTs), including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the daily use of anti-HIV medications by people at high HIV risk to prevent infection before it occurs. However, there are numerous uncertainties regarding NPT use in Canadian ACB populations that warrant urgent attention. For instance, although a variety of stakeholder groups in Canada have expressed cautious optimism regarding NPTs, our prior work has also raised uncertainties about the acceptability of PrEP among potential users. A second issue is the need to better understand user preferences regarding the attributes of NPTs currently in development, including their mode of delivery, dosing requirements, and side effects, which will be key determinants of both uptake and adherence. Finally, qualitative work done by our group and others suggests that there are numerous personal, social and structural barriers to engagement with HIV prevention services among ACB communities. Our research team will address these questions through three related components, including: 1.A detailed questionnaire and discrete choice experiment regarding NPT acceptability and user preferences, 2.A series of qualitative interviews exploring barriers to engagement with HIV prevention technologies and how to overcome them, and 3.KTE activities including a Community Forum bringing together a broad cross-section of stakeholders to review findings and plan next steps. The results will inform the design of clinical trials of NPT implementation in Canada as well as community-based strategies for engaging at-risk ACB individuals in meaningful conversations about NPT use.