Latrice C. Pichon, Ph.D. - US grants

Proposal Summary The conference series is aligned with the goals of the updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy and Ending the Epidemic Plan for America. The conference site is in a major MSA in the Deep South, prioritizing at-risk populations (e.g., Black women, BMSM, youth, transgender individuals), and addressing the EtHE goals of the four pillars: Diagnose, Treat, Prevent, and Respond. The proposal dovetails with the mission of NIMHD and fulfills the program scope for reducing HIV-related stigma and HIV disparities through CBPR. If successful, the project will lead to subsequent grant applications to support CBPR-driven implementation programs in the Memphis MSA. The findings will advance scientific knowledge of the utility of personal accounts of internalized HIV stigma and how depictions of church hurt shape the perspectives of faith leaders and their call to action to address stigma. While we have hosted other conferences with faith leaders addressing HIV disparities, the proposed planning meetings will feature the preexisting photovoice displays from members of marginalized groups including Black men who have sex with men, Black transgender women, and aging adults recovering from substance abuse and suffering from mental illness. Discussing vulnerabilities of these subgroups at length in faith spaces are difficult given behaviors, and therefore we are taking great strides to extend conversations to unfold realistic methods to do so. Using CBPR-based approaches in these endeavors allows for diverse perspectives to inform and influence the development of new projects and programs.

PROJECT SUMMARY In response to RFA-PS-21-001 Minority HIV Research Initiative (MARI), the goal of this application is to use community-based participatory research and intervention mapping to address priorities of Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE): A Plan for America. We will use the 3-year period to leverage HIV surveillance data and photovoice narratives of internalizations of stigma experienced by PLWH to inform, implement, and evaluate a biblically-inspired, church-based intervention tailored for predominantly Black religious congregations located in the Memphis metropolitan area, which has been identified as a high burden EHE jurisdiction in the Deep South. In Phase 1, we will analyze community surveillance data to identify protective factors and behavioral risks which may facilitate and impede HIV prevention efforts, respectively. These data subsequently will inform the pilot intervention. In Phase 2, we will randomly assign N=10 churches to the HIV education + intervention and an additional N=10 churches to the standard HIV education intervention (control) arms. Within these churches, we will randomly select n=10 congregants per church (Total n=200 congregants) and administer a survey assessing a variety of health promoting behaviors, perceived HIV risk, knowledge of PrEP, HIV testing history, and HIV-related attitudes/beliefs (i.e., stigma). The unique cultural and contextual landscape of the Memphis urban/rural metropolitan area blends historical beliefs and perspectives that have indirectly attributed to HIV-related stigma. The proposed research will utilize the expertise of an established HIV coalition of LGBTQ+ gatekeepers, faith leaders, and academic researchers to disentangle some of the known and unknown determinants that may contribute to HIV racial inequities in the Deep South. Ultimately, we anticipate this research will inform a subsequent larger efficacy trial. The public health significance includes normalizing HIV prevention and testing behaviors, promoting stigma reduction, and garnering faith-based partnerships, which dovetail current priorities detailed in the Memphis EHE plan addressing both ?diagnose? and ?treat? pillars.