Ensuring Health Care Providers Have Comprehensive Communication Tools for Future Microbicide Introduction in Kenya: A Formative Research Study

Abstract

Globally, women remain disproportionately affected by HIV (Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, 2013). A number of biological, structural, sociocultural, and behavioral factors, including an inability to use condoms with some partners, contributes to this disparity (Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, 2013; Mastro, Sista, & Abdool-Karim, 2014). However, the promising development of new antiretroviral (ARV)based HIV prevention products, including vaginal gels and rings, and oral and injectable pre-exposure prophylaxis, may result in realistic new HIV prevention options for women. Health care providers are likely to be the gateway to accessing any ARV-based HIV prevention product, and a woman's decision to use a new product may be directly linked to her experience at the health facility. For safety reasons, routine HIV testing will be required to ensure that prevention drugs are only used by those who test negative. Moreover, as demonstrated by previous clinical trials, high levels of adherence will be critical to ensure product effectiveness (Corneli et al., 2014; Marrazzo et al., 2013). Health care providers will, therefore, play a key role in both disseminating information and supporting new product uptake and adherence. To do this, they will require comprehensive counseling tools and tailored patient communication materials. They will also need to 688481P HPXXX10.