Improved prevention counseling by HIV care providers in a multisite, clinic-based intervention: Positive STEPs.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended that HIV care clinics incorporate prevention into clinical practice. This report summarizes HIV care providers' attitudes and counseling practices before and after they received training to deliver a counseling intervention to patients. Providers at seven HIV clinics received training in delivering a counseling intervention (Positive STEPs) to their patients and completed baseline and follow-up questionnaires to measure changes in prevention parameters. A cohort of patients at each clinic was independently surveyed about counseling experiences. Compared with the pretraining period, providers' self-ratings collected after they initiated the intervention showed significant (p < .05) positive changes in attitudes, comfort, self-efficacy, and frequency of delivering prevention counseling. Patients reported an increase in prevention counseling received from providers after training. The findings indicate that the training and delivery of the Positive STEPs intervention was associated with positive changes in providers' attitudes and HIV prevention counseling to patients.
Thrun
Mark
M
Denver Public Health, University of Colorado, 80204, USA. thrun@dhha.org
Cook
Paul F
PF
Bradley-Springer
Lucy A
LA
Gardner
Lytt
L
Marks
Gary
G
Wright
Julie
J
Wilson
Tracey E
TE
Quinlivan
E Byrd
EB
O'Daniels
Christine
C
Raffanti
Stephen
S
Thompson
Melanie
M
Golin
Carol
C
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D055815:Young Adult