Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Jul 23;19(1):986.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-019-7291-2.

Evaluation of community-based HIV self-testing delivery strategies on reducing undiagnosed HIV infection, and improving linkage to prevention and treatment services, among men who have sex with men in Kenya: a programme science study protocol

Parinita Bhattacharjee  1   2 , Dorothy Rego  3 , Helgar Musyoki  4 , Marissa Becker  5 , Michael Pickles  6 , Shajy Isac  5   7 , Robert Lorway  5 , Janet Musimbi  8 , Jeffrey Walimbwa  9 , Kennedy Olango  10 , Samuel Kuria  11 , Martin Kyana Ongaro  12 , Amy Sahai  5 , Mary Mugambi  4 , Faran Emmanuel  5 , Sharmistha Mishra  13   14   15 , Kigen Bartilol  4 , Stephen Moses  5 , James Blanchard  5
Affiliations

Evaluation of community-based HIV self-testing delivery strategies on reducing undiagnosed HIV infection, and improving linkage to prevention and treatment services, among men who have sex with men in Kenya: a programme science study protocol

Parinita Bhattacharjee et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: HIV prevalence among men having sex with men (MSM) in Kenya is 18.2%. Despite scale-up of HIV testing services, many MSM remain unaware of their HIV status and thus do not benefit from accessing HIV treatment or prevention services. HIV self-testing (HIVST) may help address this gap. However, evidence is limited on how, when, and in what contexts the delivery of HIVST to MSM could increase awareness of HIV status and lead to early linkage to HIV treatment and prevention.

Methods: The study will be embedded within existing MSM-focused community-based HIV prevention and treatment programmes in 3 counties in Kenya (Kisumu, Mombasa, Kiambu). The study is designed to assess three HIV testing outcomes among MSM, namely a) coverage b) frequency of testing and c) early uptake of testing. The study will adopt a mixed methods programme science approach to the implementation and evaluation of HIVST strategies via: (i) a baseline and endline bio-behavioural survey with 1400 MSM; (ii) a socio-sexual network study with 351 MSM; (iii) a longitudinal qualitative cohort study with 72 MSM; (iv) routine programme monitoring in three sites; (v) a programme-specific costing exercise; and (vi) mathematical modelling. This protocol evaluates the impact of community-based implementation of HIV self-testing delivery strategies among MSM in Kenya on reducing the undiagnosed MSM population, and time for linkage to prevention, treatment and care following HIV self-testing. Baseline data collection started in April 2019 and the endline data collection will start in July 2020.

Discussion: This study is one of the first programme science studies in Sub-Saharan Africa exploring the effectiveness of integrating HIVST interventions within already existing HIV prevention and treatment programmes for MSM in Kenya at scale. Findings from this study will inform national best approaches to scale up HIVST among MSM in Kenya.

Keywords: Evaluation; HIV prevention; HIV self testing; Kenya; MSM.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Hypothesis of the study
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Sample seed-based network
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Mathematical model structure
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. National AIDS Control Council (NACC), Kenya. Kenya HIV Estimates Report 2018. Ministry of Health, Kenya. 2018. https://nacc.or.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/HIV-estimates-report-Kenya.... Accessed 15 May 2019.
    1. National AIDS Control Council (NACC), Kenya. Kenya AIDS Response Progress Report 2018. Ministry of health, Kenya. 2018. https://www.lvcthealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/KARPR-Report_2018.pdf. Accessed 15 May 2019.
    1. National AIDS Control Council (NACC), Kenya. Kenya HIV Prevention Response and Modes of Transmission Analysis, Final Report. Republic of Kenya. 2009. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/229521468331880313/pdf/483560S.... Accessed 15 May 2019.
    1. National AIDS Control Council (NACC), Kenya. Kenya AIDS Strategic Framework 2014/2015–2018/2019. Ministry of Health, Kenya. 2014. https://nacc.or.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/KASF_Final.pdf. Accessed 15 May 2019.
    1. National AIDS and STI Control Programme (NASCOP), Kenya. Minutes of the Meeting, Kenya National Key Population Technical Working Group. Ministry of Health, Kenya. 2019.

Publication types