Barriers and Facilitators to PrEP Use Among People Who Inject Drugs in Rural Appalachia: A Qualitative Study

Sean T. Allen; Allison O’Rourke; Rebecca Hamilton White; Katherine C. Smith; Brian Weir; Gregory M. Lucas; Susan G. Sherman; Suzanne M. Grieb

doi:10.1007/s10461-019-02767-3

Barriers and Facilitators to PrEP Use Among People Who Inject Drugs in Rural Appalachia: A Qualitative Study

Sean T. Allen, Allison O’Rourke, Rebecca Hamilton White, Katherine C. Smith, Brian Weir, Gregory M. Lucas, Susan G. Sherman, Suzanne M. Grieb

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

The opioid crisis has increased risks for injection drug use-associated HIV outbreaks in rural communities throughout the United States. Existing research has examined pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) utilization among people who inject drugs (PWID); however, no studies have been conducted to explore barriers and facilitators of PrEP use among rural PWID in Appalachia. We conducted qualitative interviews with PWID (n = 48) in two rural counties in West Virginia to explore barriers and facilitators of PrEP use. Among our participants, the majority (68.8%) had never heard of PrEP. Upon learning about PrEP, most participants expressed willingness to use it. Rural PWID described several factors that may impede PrEP utilization (e.g., housing instability, forgetting to take PrEP). Participants also identified practical strategies to support sustained PrEP utilization, such as integrating PrEP services into venues PWID access. This research provides important insights into the barriers and facilitators of PrEP utilization among rural PWID.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1942-1950
Number of pages	9
Journal	AIDS and behavior
Volume	24
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-019-02767-3
State	Published - Jun 1 2020

Keywords

HIV
People who inject drugs
PrEP
Rural health

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Social Psychology
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
Infectious Diseases

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Barriers and Facilitators to PrEP Use Among People Who Inject Drugs in Rural Appalachia : A Qualitative Study. / Allen, Sean T.; O’Rourke, Allison; White, Rebecca Hamilton; Smith, Katherine C.; Weir, Brian ; Lucas, Gregory M.; Sherman, Susan G.; Grieb, Suzanne M.

In: AIDS and behavior, Vol. 24, No. 6, 01.06.2020, p. 1942-1950.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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abstract = "The opioid crisis has increased risks for injection drug use-associated HIV outbreaks in rural communities throughout the United States. Existing research has examined pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) utilization among people who inject drugs (PWID); however, no studies have been conducted to explore barriers and facilitators of PrEP use among rural PWID in Appalachia. We conducted qualitative interviews with PWID (n = 48) in two rural counties in West Virginia to explore barriers and facilitators of PrEP use. Among our participants, the majority (68.8%) had never heard of PrEP. Upon learning about PrEP, most participants expressed willingness to use it. Rural PWID described several factors that may impede PrEP utilization (e.g., housing instability, forgetting to take PrEP). Participants also identified practical strategies to support sustained PrEP utilization, such as integrating PrEP services into venues PWID access. This research provides important insights into the barriers and facilitators of PrEP utilization among rural PWID.",

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note = "Funding Information: This research was supported by a Grant from the Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to Dr. Sean T. Allen. This research has been facilitated by the infrastructure and resources provided by the Johns Hopkins University Center for AIDS Research, an NIH funded program (P30AI094189), and by the District of Columbia Center for AIDS Research, an NIH funded program (AI117970). STA and GML are supported by the National Institutes of Health (K01DA046234, K24DA035684). The funders had no role in study design, data collection, or in analysis and interpretation of the results, and this paper does not necessarily reflect views or opinions of the funders. We are grateful to our study participants. ",

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