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COVID-19, Vaccine Hesitancy, and HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Among Black Sexual Minority Men

Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has created substantial and profound barriers to several forms of health care engagement. For Black sexual minority men, this may include engagement with pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection, with significant implications for HIV disparities. Our study explored how the COVID-19 pandemic affected Black sexual minority men, with a focus on relationships between COVID-19 and PrEP engagement. SETTING: We sampled 24 Black sexual minority men attending HIV prevention-related events in the greater D.C. Metropolitan area (D.C., Maryland, Virginia). METHODS: We conducted qualitative phone interviews among our sample. Questions were primarily focused on the COVID-19 pandemic and how it affected engagement and considerations of PrEP use. Interviews were transcribed and qualitatively analyzed using the 6 stages of thematic analysis. RESULTS: We identified 3 major themes from our thematic analysis: Changes in the health care system, changes in sexual and relationship contexts, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and misinformation. Relationships between COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and PrEP hesitancy were especially prevalent, with participants describing that COVID-19 hesitancy can directly deter PrEP use through eroding medical trust further. CONCLUSIONS: We identified changes in the health care system, sexual and relationship contexts, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy as important issues driven by COVID-19 with significant implications for PrEP use. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the health care and social landscape in profound ways that affect PrEP access, sexual networks, and associated HIV vulnerability. Future research further exploring relationships between specific pandemic stressors and HIV prevention among Black sexual minority men is recommended .
DOI: 10.1097/qai.0000000000003305
Authors: Rodman E. Turpin, CJ Mandell, Aaron D. Camp, Rochelle R. Davidson Mhonde, Typhanye V. Dyer, Kenneth H. Mayer, Hongjie Liu, Thomas Coates, Bradley O. Boekeloo
Institutions: George Mason University, Inova Health System, Brandeis University, University of Maryland, College Park, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard University, Fenway Health, University of California, Los Angeles
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Open Access status: green
Funders: National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
OpenAlex ID: W4386910297
FWCI: 0.827
Cites: 32
Cited by: 4
Related to: 10