UsNoW
Overview
We propose to leverage YBMSM’s supportive connections with Black women to develop UsNoW (PrEP Utilization through increasing Social Capital among YBMSM Networks with Women), a novel mobile health intervention that will engage Black women as facilitators in existing networks of YBMSM, as a way of enhancing social capital, decreasing intersectional stigma, and promoting PrEP uptake within the network.
This study will be conducted in an epicenter of the Southern HIV epidemic: Alabama.
Background
HIV, especially in the South, disproportionately affects young Black men who have sex with men (YBMSM). Development and implementation of effective interventions to scale up HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) are urgently needed in this population.
Prior work has focused on individual-level approaches to increasing PrEP utilization, while social network-level approaches are comparatively underutilized. Individuals within social networks have access to social capital, which can yield emotional as well as instrumental resources that influence health behaviors. Black women represent a key source of social capital within YBMSM social networks, and this unique role has not been utilized in prior PrEP interventions.
App Highlights
The central feature of the UsNoW intervention will be real-time, virtual discussions led by a trained Black woman facilitator, delivered to an existing network of YBMSM.
More coming soon!
Study Description
Coming soon!
Findings and Takeaways
Coming soon!
What’s Next
Coming soon!