Vancouver, B.C. [December 9, 2013] – A new study launched today aims to improve treatment and access to care for British Columbians newly diagnosed with HIV.
Led by researchers at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE), the Engage Study will investigate people’s decisions and attitudes toward beginning highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). HAART has been shown to eliminate progression of HIV infection to AIDS and premature death, and significantly decrease the amount of virus in the blood and sexual fluids, thereby preventing transmission of HIV.
“Advances in treatment have led to significant gains in public and individual health outcomes, transforming HIV from a death sentence to a chronic, manageable disease,” said Dr. Robert Hogg, principal investigator and director of the Epidemiology and Population Health Program at the BC-CfE.”We need to better understand how we can help people in their treatment decisions and how supports, in the clinical and community arenas, can be improved to ensure everyone benefits from this life-saving treatment.”
As part of the Treatment as Prevention strategy, British Columbia promotes widespread and fully Pharmacare-supported access to HIV testing and treatment. Researchers hope to discover why those who are new to HIV treatment may delay treatment initiation or drop from care altogether – both of which could lead to detectable amounts of HIV in their bloodstream, meaning they could transmit the infection along to others because they were not consistently taking their medication or taking it as prescribed.
Earlier this year, B.C.’s Ministry of Health expanded access to HIV testing and treatment through the provincial roll-out of the STOP HIV/AIDS¨ initiative. As part of the Engage Study, researchers will examine the characteristics of people who are initiating HAART in B.C. at a time when there is expanded testing and treatment throughout the province. In addition, they aim to determine the role of HIV-related care – such as routine access to care, physician experience, physical and social barriers to care – and engagement with community-based organizations on HAART uptake and retention.
“Providing timely treatment and care to people who are living with HIV is critical,” said Sarah Kesselring, Engage Study coordinator.”We hope the results from our research will be beneficial to the community and lead to improvements in how we engage people into care.”
Researchers will recruit people over two years who have started HAART for the first time in the past six months. Participation in the study involves completion of a baseline survey and another follow-up survey six to 12 months later. The survey will assess the treatment attitudes, behaviours, and beliefs of HIV-positive individuals who are newly starting treatment in B.C.
The Engage Study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and is led by the BC-CfE with the help of many collaborators and co-investigators.
To participate in the study, please call 1-855-506-8615 or visit our website at www.bccfe.ca/research/engage-study.