Acceptability of a Community Health Worker Program to Link High-Risk People in Jail to HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis.

People involved in the criminal justice system (PICJS) are at a disproportionate risk for HIV infection. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is highly effective for HIV prevention; however, there are barriers to accessing and remaining on PrEP. We explored perspectives on partnering with a community health worker (CHW) to link PICJS to PrEP. We interviewed PICJS (n=21) and relevant stakeholders (n=15). The following themes emerged: 1) All participants were receptive to the idea of a CHW program and believed it would be valuable; 2) the PICJS participating in the CHW program would need immediate contact post-release and continuous follow-up with the CHW; 3) desirable program components included HIV education and information about PrEP; 4) participants mentioned several facilitators and barriers to successfully implementing the CHW program; and 5) the CHW needs to be relatable. Our findings suggest that a PrEP linkage program facilitated by a CHW would be desirable.

Citation

S Alexandra Marshall, Caroline Barham, Taylor Neher, Melissa J Zielinski, Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein, Margaret M Gorvine, Nickolas Zaller. Acceptability of a Community Health Worker Program to Link High-Risk People in Jail to HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis. Journal of health care for the poor and underserved. 2022;33(1):149-166

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PMID: 35153211

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