Horizons Projects | HIV Prevention with Positive People in Mombasa, Kenya: How Do We Support Them in the Community?

HORIZONS PROJECT
HIV Prevention with Positive People in Mombasa, Kenya: How Do We Support Them in the Community?

With the promise of universal access to antiretroviral therapy (ART), HIV-positive persons receiving treatment, care, and support potentially can enjoy improved health, longevity, and life options. But there is growing evidence that the beneficial outcomes of ART may have inadvertent effects on individual and group attitudes and understandings of HIV risk factors, which may lead to more risky sexual behavior and an increase in the prevalence and incidence of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.

In the past, HIV prevention efforts have focused primarily on developing risk-reduction interventions for those presumed to be HIV-negative and therefore at risk of becoming infected with HIV. In recognition of the need for prevention with positive people (PwP), programs for people living with HIV (PLWH) have been initiated in Africa, but primarily in clinical settings for those who are on ART. There is little knowledge about how to reach those PLWH not on ART, and therefore not in regular contact with the health system or with effective prevention messages.

This diagnostic study aims to address the gap in information on how to identify and access treatment-naïve, HIV-positive persons in the community as a first step in designing and implementing a community-based PwP project in Mombasa, Kenya. Based on the findings from approximately 600 PLWH not on treatment who will be interviewed, and pending future funding, a PwP intervention will be developed, implemented, and evaluated.

Location

Mombasa District, Kenya

Duration

April 2007–September 2007

Horizons and Population Council researchers

Avina Sarna, Waimar Tun, Susan Kaai (until August 2007)

Non-Council collaborator

Stanley Luchters (International Centre for Reproductive Health)

Donor

US Agency for International Development