title: Community member perspectives from transgender women and men who have sex with men on pre-exposure prophylaxis as an HIV prevention strategy: implications for implementation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  An international randomized clinical trial (RCT) on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) as an human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-prevention intervention found that taken on a daily basis, PrEP was safe and effective among men who have sex with men (MSM) and male-to-female transgender women. Within the context of the HIV epidemic in the United States (US), MSM and transgender women are the most appropriate groups to target for PrEP implementation at the population level; however, their perspectives on evidenced-based biomedical research and the results of this large trial remain virtually unknown. In this study, we examined the acceptability of individual daily use of PrEP and assessed potential barriers to community uptake.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted semi-structured interviews with an ethnoracially diverse sample of thirty HIV-negative and unknown status MSM (n = 24) and transgender women (n = 6) in three California metropolitan areas. Given the burden of disease among ethnoracial minorities in the US, we purposefully oversampled for these groups. Thematic coding and analysis of data was conducted utilizing an approach rooted in grounded theory.
  
  
  RESULTS
  While participants expressed general interest in PrEP availability, results demonstrate: a lack of community awareness and confusion about PrEP; reservations about PrEP utilization, even when informed of efficacious RCT results; and concerns regarding equity and the manner in which a PrEP intervention could be packaged and marketed in their communities.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In order to effectively reduce HIV health disparities at the population level, PrEP implementation must take into account the uptake concerns of those groups who would actually access and use this biomedical intervention as a prevention strategy. Recommendations addressing these concerns are provided.
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA. dr.gabriel.galindo@gmail.com.|HIV Epidemiology Section, Office of AIDS, San Francisco Department of Public Health, 25 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA, 94102, USA. dr.gabriel.galindo@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Gabriel R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Galindo
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.|Department of Psychology, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton Street, San Francisco, CA, 94117, USA.
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Garrett-Walker
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hazelton
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lane
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.
authors.forename: Wayne T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Steward
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.
authors.forename: Stephen F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Morin
authors.affiliation: Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of California at San Francisco, 50 Beale Street, Suite 1300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.
authors.forename: Emily A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Arnold
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002140:California; D018890:Chemoprevention / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D019529:Sexuality / Q000523:psychology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D063106:Transgender Persons / Q000523:psychology*
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents