Three members of the Washington University in St. Louis faculty have been awarded a $3 million research grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to address the economic and structural barriers associated with access and use of an oral medication to prevent HIV infection.
The new study called Suubi4PrEP is a multilevel combination intervention focused on oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) access, initiation and adherence among 15- to 24-year-old adolescent girls and young women living within HIV hotpots in Uganda.
Recipients of the grant are Fred Ssewamala, the William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor at the Brown School and director of the International Center for Child Health and Development (ICHAD); Proscovia Nabunya, an assistant professor at the Brown School and co-director of ICHAD; and Juliet Iwelunmor, a professor of medicine and associate director for global health and dissemination at WashU Medicine.
The study will combine HIV risk reduction that incorporates sessions on PrEP; peer support; and an economic empowerment component targeting poverty and financial barriers to PrEP access.