The Society of General Internal Medicine's Recommendations to Improve LGBTQ + Health.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ +) individuals experience bias in healthcare with 1 in 6 LGBTQ + adults avoiding healthcare due to anticipated discrimination and overall report poorer health status compared to heterosexual and cisgendered peers. The Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM) is a leading organization representing academic physicians and recognizes that significant physical and mental health inequities exist among LGBTQ + communities. As such, SGIM sees its role in improving LGBTQ + patient health through structural change, starting at the national policy level all the way to encouraging change in individual provider bias and personal actions. SGIM endorses a series of recommendations for policy priorities, research and data collection standards, and institutional policy changes as well as community engagement and individual practices to reduce bias and improve the well-being and health of LGBTQ + patients.

The Use of Online Posts to Identify Barriers to and Facilitators of HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Among Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Comparison to a Systematic Review of the Peer-Reviewed Literature.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) remains an under-utilized HIV prevention tool among men who have sex with men (MSM). To more comprehensively elucidate barriers and facilitators to PrEP use among US MSM, we conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed published articles and content analysis of online posts about PrEP. We searched peer-reviewed databases (Medline, Web of Science, Google Scholar) using MESH headings and keywords about PrEP and/or HIV prevention from 2005 to 2015. We included original studies among MSM in the US that reported on barriers, facilitators, or other factors related to PrEP use. We also searched online posts and associated comments (news articles, opinion pieces, blogs and other social media posts) in diverse venues (Facebook, Slate Outward, Huffington Post Gay Voices, Queerty, and My PrEP Experience blog) to identify posts about PrEP. We used content analysis to identify themes and compare potential differences between the peer-reviewed literature and online posts. We identified 25 peer-reviewed articles and 28 online posts meeting inclusion criteria. We identified 48 unique barriers and 46 facilitators to using PrEP. These 94 themes fit into six overarching categories: (1) access (n = 14), (2) attitudes/beliefs (n = 24), (3) attributes of PrEP (n = 13), (4) behaviors (n = 11), (5) sociodemographic characteristics (n = 8), and (6) social network (n = 6). In all categories, analysis of online posts resulted in identification of a greater number of unique themes. Thirty-eight themes were identified in the online posts that were not identified in the peer-reviewed literature. We identified barriers and facilitators to PrEP in online posts that were not identified in a systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature. By incorporating data both from a systematic review of peer-reviewed articles and from online posts, we have identified salient and novel information about barriers to and facilitators of PrEP use. Traditional research approaches may not comprehensively capture current factors important for designing and implementing PrEP related interventions.

Outcomes Along the HIV Care Continuum Among Undocumented Immigrants in Clinical Care.

HIV-infected undocumented immigrants face unique barriers to care yet little is known about their clinical outcomes. We performed a retrospective cohort study of HIV-infected adults in clinical care from 2006 to 2014 at a large academic medical center in a setting where medical insurance is available to HIV-infected undocumented immigrants. Undocumented status was assessed based on Social Security number and insurance status and verified through medical chart review. Using Poisson regression models, we compared undocumented and documented patients with respect to retention in care (≥2 HIV-related laboratory tests ≥90 days apart), antiretroviral therapy (ART) prescription (≥3 active antiretroviral agents prescribed in a year), and viral suppression (HIV RNA <200 copies/ml for the last measured viral load) for each year in care. Of 7,551 patients included in the analysis, we classified 173 (2.3%) as undocumented. For each year of the analysis, higher proportions of undocumented patients were retained in care, prescribed ART, and virally suppressed. In adjusted models, undocumented status was associated with increased probability of retention in care [risk ratio (RR) 1.05, confidence interval (95% CI) 1.01-1.09], ART prescription (RR 1.05, 95% CI 1.01-1.08), and viral suppression (RR 1.13, 95% CI 1.08-1.19) compared to documented status. Undocumented patients achieved clinical outcomes at modestly higher rates than documented patients, despite entering care with more advanced disease. In a setting where insurance is available to undocumented patients, similar outcomes along the HIV care continuum may be achieved regardless of immigration status.

Emerging from the database shadows: characterizing undocumented immigrants in a large cohort of HIV-infected persons.

Little is known about how HIV affects undocumented immigrants despite social and structural factors that may place them at risk of poor HIV outcomes. Our understanding of the clinical epidemiology of HIV-infected undocumented immigrants is limited by the challenges of determining undocumented immigration status in large data sets. We developed an algorithm to predict undocumented status using social security number (SSN) and insurance data. We retrospectively applied this algorithm to a cohort of HIV-infected adults receiving care at a large urban healthcare system who attended at least one HIV-related outpatient visit from 1997 to 2013, classifying patients as "screened undocumented" or "documented". We then reviewed the medical records of screened undocumented patients, classifying those whose records contained evidence of undocumented status as "undocumented per medical chart" (charted undocumented). Bivariate measures of association were used to identify demographic and clinical characteristics associated with undocumented immigrant status. Of 7593 patients, 205 (2.7%) were classified as undocumented by the algorithm. Compared to documented patients, undocumented patients were younger at entry to care (mean 38.5 years vs. 40.6 years, p < 0.05), less likely to be female (33.2% vs. 43.1%, p < 0.01), less likely to report injection drug use as their primary HIV risk factor (3.4% vs. 18.0%, p < 0.001), and had lower median CD4 count at entry to care (288 vs. 339 cells/mm3, p < 0.01). After medical record review, we re-classified 104 patients (50.7%) as charted undocumented. Demographic and clinical characteristics of charted undocumented did not differ substantially from screened undocumented. Our algorithm allowed us to identify and clinically characterize undocumented immigrants within an HIV-infected population, though it overestimated the prevalence of patients who were undocumented.

A Cross-Sectional Online Survey of HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Adoption Among Primary Care Physicians.

BACKGROUND: Among health care providers, prescription of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been low. Little is known specifically about primary care physicians (PCPs) with regard to PrEP awareness and adoption (i.e., prescription or referral), and factors associated with adoption. OBJECTIVE: To assess PrEP awareness, PrEP adoption, and factors associated with adoption among PCPs. DESIGN: Cross-sectional online survey conducted in April and May 2015. RESPONDENTS: Members of a national professional organization for academic primary care physicians (n = 266). MAIN MEASURES: PrEP awareness, PrEP adoption (ever prescribed or referred a patient for PrEP [yes/no]), provider and practice characteristics, and self-rated knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs associated with adoption. KEY RESULTS: The survey response rate was 8.6 % (266/2093). Ninety-three percent of respondents reported prior awareness of PrEP. Of these, 34.9 % reported PrEP adoption. In multivariable analysis of provider and practice characteristics, compared with non-adopters, adopters were more likely to provide care to more than 50 HIV-positive patients (vs. 0, aOR = 6.82, 95 % CI 2.06-22.52). Compared with non-adopters, adopters were also more likely to report excellent, very good, or good self-rated PrEP knowledge (15.1 %, 33.7 %, 30.2 % vs. 2.5 %, 18.1 %, 23.8 %, respectively; p < 0.001) and to perceive PrEP as extremely safe (35.1 % vs. 10.7 %; p = 0.002). Compared with non-adopters, adopters were less likely to perceive PrEP as being moderately likely to increase risk behaviors ("risk compensation") (12.8 % vs. 28.8 %, p = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: While most respondents were aware of PrEP, only one-third of PrEP-aware PCPs reported adoption. Adopters were more likely to have experience providing HIV care and to perceive PrEP as extremely safe, and were less likely to perceive PrEP use as leading to risk compensation. To enhance PCP adoption of PrEP, educational efforts targeting PCPs without HIV care experience should be considered, as well as training those with HIV care experience to be PrEP "clinical champions". Concerns about safety and risk compensation must also be addressed.

Bangladeshi immigrants in New York City: a community based health needs assessment of a hard to reach population.

South Asians, particularly Bangladeshis, are one of the fastest growing immigrant groups in the U.S. Limited data exist regarding the health needs of Bangladeshis in the U.S. More data are needed to guide health intervention efforts for this community. To help address this gap, we conducted a community-based health needs assessment survey among women in a Bangladeshi population living in Bronx, NY. Community health promoters conducted a door-to-door household survey and collected data from 167 women, an approach that yielded a participation rate over 90%. Over half reported fair or poor health and 36.5% screened positive for risk of depression. Only 35% had engaged in physical activity over the past month. 60% reported never having received a pap smear. Using WHO guidelines for BMI, 74% were either overweight or obese. Age-standardized prevalence of type 2 diabetes and hypertension were 15.4 and 36.5% respectively. In a multivariable logistic regression model, age and percent lifetime in the U.S. were independently associated with having diabetes. Poor health behaviors and high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors observed in this group suggest the need for early health promotion and prevention interventions.