Mayleigh Tidd, Health Services Research in Pharmacy graduate student (Richert Research Group), will be defending her PhD research thesis:

Evaluating the state of Wisconsin’s HIV Prevention Program, PrEP Navigation: a multi-method study

The HIV epidemic continues to be a public health concern for the United States, including in the state of Wisconsin. As of 2022, more than 7,000 individuals were living with HIV in Wisconsin and the state is currently seeing the highest spike of new HIV cases in the past ten years. Fortunately, the advancements in HIV prevention have led to the development of a bio-medical prevention option known as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). However, PrEP is widely underutilized in the U.S. and in Wisconsin. As of 2022, there were an estimated 14,000 individuals in the state considered at risk of contracting HIV, and only 26% of those individuals were being prescribed and taking it. One evidence-based intervention/program being deployed in the state to increase access and uptake of PrEP, is PrEP Navigation.

Mae has partnered with Wisconsin Department of Health Services’ HIV Prevention team to evaluate the states PrEP Navigation program, while also exploring PrEP prescribing trends. Mae conducted interviews with individuals on PrEP in Wisconsin, both receiving care through the navigation program and those receiving care elsewhere, to identify barriers and facilitators to PrEP care. Additionally, she conducted key-informant interviews with navigators disseminating the program to understand their unique experiences facilitating PrEP care. Using the Practical, Robust Implementation and Sustainability Model she provides a comprehensive evaluation of the PrEP Navigation program, identifying benefits and challenges to the program and areas for improvement. Furthermore, Maeconducted a secondary data analysis to explore PrEP prescribing disparities and inequities and provides suggestions for how the Navigation program can assist in addressing and overcoming them, ultimately to increase the number of individuals at highest risk of HIV on PrEP.

Next steps include sharing findings with the states HIV Prevention team to facilitate program improvements, to expand the program to increase its reach and effectiveness in increasing PrEP uptake among individuals at risk of HIV and, ultimately, decrease new HIV infections in the state.