Research Synthesis, HIV Prevention Response, and Public Health: CDC’s HIV/AIDS Prevention Research Synthesis Project

Abstract

Objective Research synthesis, through qualitative or quantitative systematic reviews, allows for integrating results of primary research to improve public health. We examined more than 2 decades of work in HIV prevention by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) HIV/AIDS Prevention Research Synthesis (PRS) Project. We describe the context and contributions of research synthesis, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses, through the experience of the PRS Project. Methods We reviewed PRS Project publications and products and summarized PRS contributions from 1996 to July 2020 in 4 areas: synthesis of interventions and epidemiologic studies, synthesis methods, prevention programs, and prevention policy. Results PRS Project publications summarized risk behaviors and effects of prevention interventions (eg, changing one’s perception of risk, teaching condom negotiation skills) across populations at risk for HIV infection and intervention approaches (eg, one-on-one or group meetings) as the HIV/AIDS epidemic and science evolved. We used the PRS Project cumulative database and intervention efficacy reviews to contribute to prevention programs and policies through identification of evidence-based interventions and development of program guidance. Subject matter experts and scientific evidence informed PRS Project products and contributions, which were implemented through strategic programmatic partnerships. Conclusions The contributions of the PRS Project to HIV prevention and public health efforts in the United States can be credited to CDC’s long-standing support of the project and its context within a federal prevention agency, where HIV programs and policies were developed and implemented. The effect of the PRS Project was likely facilitated by opportunities to directly influence program and policy because of connections with other research translation activities and program and policy decision making within CDC.

Protective Factors That Foster Resilience to HIV/AIDS: Insights and Lived Experiences of Older Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men

“…In their own unique ways, the remaining four factors that we identified from the analysis of our interview data (i.e., abstinence, trauma from the loss of many lives to HIV/AIDS at the start of the epidemic, "managed" substance use, and meaningful sexual relationships) sparked controversy in the academic literature on HIV/AIDS. In fact, because of their seemingly controversial nature, these factors were discussed extensively in empirical research articles [52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60], which could potentially be used as starting points when considering these factors in the development of interventions for addressing HIV/AIDS health disparities that affect older gbMSM. We contend that these factors, despite the controversies they may have inspired in prior scholarly contributions, should be seriously considered, and even valued, in the development of interventions for fostering resilience to HIV/AIDS and addressing health disparities, principally because they were purposefully harnessed from the insights and personal experiences of racially and ethnically diverse, older gbMSM living with HIV/AIDS who have exhibited resilience since their HIV diagnosis.…”

“…The main controversy that surrounds incorporating abstinence in the development and establishment of interventions addressing HIV/AIDS health disparities that impact gbMSM is the debate on whether it would be more effective to promote abstinence-only measures or advocate for abstinence-plus measures (i.e., abstinence plus fidelity and condom use) programs instead [54,[61][62][63][64]. With this ongoing debate, many ASOs and community-based agencies find themselves having to select one option over the other in the development of their interventions to address HIV/AIDS health disparities.…”

Peran Inti Muda Papua terhadap Pendampingan Penularan HIV/AIDS pada Remaja

“…Pemberikan edukasi pada kalangan remaja yang terinfeksi virus tersebut (Diliana et al, 2023) ODHA (Orang Dengan HIV/AIDS), seseorang yang menderita HIV/AIDS secara fisik menurun, dan akan berpengaruh pada sosial dan psikologi (Parmin & Safitri, 2023). Orang yang baru terpapar virus HIV belum tentu mengidap AIDS, namun sistem kekebalan tubuh lamakelamaan akan mengalami penurunan dan semakin melemah, sehingga mudah terserang penyakit lainnya, pada tahap ini disebut sebagai AIDS (Koenig et al, 2022).…”

Socioeconomic factors and the evaluation of HIV/AIDS prevention programs: A psychometric analysis of an instrument

“…Research has documented the prevalence of different HIV/AIDS prevention programs launched to reduce the spread of the virus [2][3][4]. However, the extent to which the success or otherwise of these programs are achieved is rarely discussed.…”