Making Universal, Free-of-charge Antiretroviral Therapy Work for Sexual and Gender Minority Youth in Brazil
This study seeks to develop and pilot test a theory-based, integrated technology and counseling intervention to improve ART adherence among sexual and gender minority (SGM) young people living with HIV (ages 18-24) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The intervention aims to improve social support, self-efficacy for taking ART, and teach skills for problem-solving barriers to promote better adherence.
• between 18 and 24 years of age
• assigned male sex at birth
• identify as a gay or bisexual man, or a transgender woman or another gender identity along the feminine spectrum
• self-report living with HIV, and verified by medical chart review,
• self-report currently taking or prescribed ART for \> 3 months
• self-report missing 2 or more doses of ART medications in any given week in the past month OR not virally suppressed (i.e., \>40 copies/mL in past 3 months; via national outpatient data \[SISCEL\] or plasma viral load testing)
• owns a cell phone or willing to use one as part of the study