Background The COVID-19 and HIV epidemics have exacerbated existing inequities among vulnerable groups and severely impacted communities of color. People living with HIV (PLWH), who may already face stigma or discrimination, are at risk of experiencing further stigma as a result of COVID-19, which can result in medical mistrust. Methods We performed qualitative interviews between June and August 2020 among 32 PLWH, including 10 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19. A majority of participants perceived themselves as having an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to their HIV status. Results Of those who tested positive for COVID-19, the majority regarded their HIV diagnosis as having a more profound impact on their lives but found similarities between COVID-19 stigma and HIV-related stigma. Many participants also expressed mistrust. Conclusions These results can be used to better understand the perspectives of PLWH during the COVID-19 pandemic and have important implications for potential COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and future health crises.

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Shared decision making is a collaborative process intended to develop a treatment plan that considers both the patient's preferences and the health provider's medical recommendations. It is one approach to reducing healthcare disparities by improving patientprovider communication and subsequent health outcomes. This study examines shared decision making about HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with Black transgender women in Chicago, Illinois, USA, given high prevalence of HIV and disparities in PrEP use. Black transgender women were recruited online and in-person to participate in semi-structured interviews (n ¼ 24) and focus groups (2; n ¼ 14 total), conducted between 2016 and 2017. Iterative thematic content analysis took place. Analysis revealed that internalised transphobia and racism, combined with stigma from service providers, prevented disclosure of gender and sexual identity to providers. Stigma about PrEP as it relates to Black transgender women results in stereotype threat, which undermines patient-provider trust and deters shared decision making for PrEP. Shared decision making promotes cultural competence and humility and builds trust within the patient-provider relationship, leading to better communication and less stigma. The involvement of peers may be one way to mitigate stigma for Black transgender women around PrEP, promote cultural competence within organisations, and empower engagement in shared decision making for HIV prevention.

Background Routine opt-out HIV testing in healthcare settings is often not implemented to its fullest extent. We assessed factors contributing to missed HIV testing opportunities at an academic medical center in Chicago, Illinois, with a routine HIV screening program. Methods Retrospective analysis of HIV testing in clinical encounters was performed using multivariate regession models. Missed opportunities were defined as 1) an encounter during which an HIV test was not conducted on a patient later diagnosed with HIV, or 2) an encounter in which a bacterial STI test was performed without HIV testing. Results Of 122 people newly diagnosed with HIV from 2011-2018, 98 patients had 1215 prior encounters, of which 82.8% were missed opportunities. Female gender, persons not known to be men who have sex with men, and encounter location other than inpatient had higher odds of a missed opportunity. Nearly half (48.4%) of 104,678 bacterial STI testing encounters were missed opportunities. Female gender, older age, lack of syphilis testing, and location outside the emergency department had higher odds of a missed opportunity. Conclusions We found a high number of missed HIV testing opportunities, which could be reduced by strengthening routine screening and increasing targeted testing concurrent with STI screening.

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