Brothers Building Brothers by Breaking Barriers: development of a resilience-building social capital intervention for young black gay and bisexual men living with HIV

Abstract

Young Black gay/bisexual and other men who have sex with men (YB-GBMSM) are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS. Novel intervention strategies are needed to optimize engagement in HIV care for this population. We sought to develop a group-level intervention to enhance resilience by augmenting social capital (defined as the sum of resources in an individual's social network) among YB-GBMSM living with HIV, with the ultimate goal of improving engagement in HIV care. Our multiphase, community-based participatory research (CBPR) intervention development process included: (1) Development and maintenance of a youth advisory board (YAB) comprised of YB-GBMSM living with HIV; (2) Qualitative in-depth interviews with YB-GBMSM living with HIV; (3) Qualitative in-depth interviews with care and service providers at clinics and community-based organizations; and (4) Collaborative development of intervention modules and activities with our YAB, informed by social capital theory and our formative research results. The result of this process is Brothers Building Brothers By Breaking Barriers, a two-day, 10-module group-level intervention. The intervention does not focus exclusively on HIV, but rather takes a holistic approach to supporting youth and enhancing resilience. Intervention modules aim to develop resilience at the individual level (exploration of black gay identity, development of critical self-reflection and coping skills), social network level (exploring strategies for navigating family and intimate relationships) and community level (developing strategies for navigating clinical spaces and plans for community participation). Most intervention activities are interactive, in order to facilitate new social network connectionsand accompanying social capitalwithin intervention groups. In summary, our intensive CBPR approach resulted in a novel, culturally-specific intervention designed to enhance HIV care engagement by augmenting resilience and social capital among YB-GBMSM living with HIV.

A designathon to co-create community-driven HIV self-testing services for Nigerian youth: findings from a participatory event

“…Youth typically contribute to research as participants, key informants, and assistants [10,11]. While some studies have expanded youth engagement in HIV research by creating youth advisory boards (YABs), the extent of meaningful engagement varies [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. Providing youth with opportunities to create solutions to health problems that affect them can enhance program implementation and build capacity for youth as co-creators [10,22].…”

Network Properties Among Gay, Bisexual and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men Vary by Race

“…Aspects of young Black men's networks, such as lack of affiliation in any LGBTQ social groups or membership in particular social groups could be targeted for tailored interventions designed to increase social capital, resilience, and potentially improve myriad health outcomes, including HIV prevention and treatment among GBM of color. A recent group-level intervention designed to improve engagement in care for young Black GBM living with HIV in the South successfully demonstrated that exploring interactive strategies for navigating social relationships can facilitate new social network connections and augment social capital within intervention groups [75]. Future research should therefor investigate whether network properties are associated with high impact prevention activities among Black GBM that can be leveraged for social capital and network-based interventions.…”

Vital Voices: HIV Prevention and Care Interventions Developed for Disproportionately Affected Communities by Historically Underrepresented, Early-Career Scientists

“…The objective of B6 is to increase social capital for young Black gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (YB-GBMSM) who are HIV-positive, as a means to improve care engagement and mental health outcomes. The group-level intervention was developed through an iterative community-based participatory research process [ 53 , 54 ], in collaboration with a youth advisory board composed of HIV-positive YB-GBMSM and a separate community advisory board composed of local HIV advocates. Rather than focusing exclusively on HIV, B6 takes a holistic approach to supporting YB-GBMSM.…”