Understanding constraints on integrated care for people with HIV and multimorbid cardiovascular conditions: an application of the Theoretical Domains Framework.

BACKGROUND: People with HIV (PWH) experience increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Many PWH in the USA receive their primary medical care from infectious disease specialists in HIV clinics. HIV care teams may not be fully prepared to provide evidence-based CVD care. We sought to describe local context for HIV clinics participating in an NIH-funded implementation trial and to identify facilitators and barriers to integrated CVD preventive care for PWH. METHODS: Data were collected in semi-structured interviews and focus groups with PWH and multidisciplinary healthcare providers at three academic medical centers. We used template analysis to identify barriers and facilitators of CVD preventive care in three HIV specialty clinics using the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). RESULTS: Six focus groups were conducted with 37 PWH. Individual interviews were conducted with 34 healthcare providers and 14 PWH. Major themes were captured in seven TDF domains. Within those themes, we identified nine facilitators and 11 barriers to CVD preventive care. Knowledge gaps contributed to inaccurate CVD risk perceptions and ineffective self-management practices in PWH. Exclusive prioritization of HIV over CVD-related conditions was common in PWH and their providers. HIV care providers assumed inconsistent roles in CVD prevention, including for PWH with primary care providers. HIV providers were knowledgeable of HIV-related CVD risks and co-located health resources were consistently available to support PWH with limited resources in health behavior change. However, infrequent medical visits, perceptions of CVD prevention as a primary care service, and multiple co-location of support programs introduced local challenges to engaging in CVD preventive care. CONCLUSIONS: Barriers to screening and treatment of cardiovascular conditions are common in HIV care settings and highlight a need for greater primary care integration. Improving long-term cardiovascular outcomes of PWH will likely require multi-level interventions supporting HIV providers to expand their scope of practice, addressing patient preferences for co-located CVD preventive care, changing clinic cultures that focus only on HIV to the exclusion of non-AIDS multimorbidity, and managing constraints associated with multiple services co-location. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT03643705.

Appreciating Reasons for Nonadherence in Women.

Women aged 15-24 years have an HIV infection rate twice that of men the same age. In this study we examined reasons why HIV-infected women taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) report missing HIV medications. Women (N = 206) on ART were 2.2 times more likely to endorse reasons pertaining to forgetfulness versus reasons pertaining to problems taking pills (OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.63, 2.94, p <.001). There was a difference between the adherent and nonadherent groups in types of reasons overall (p <.001, 95% CI = -3.82, -2.03). Using a patient-centered approach to understand type of nonadherence (intentional vs. unintentional) may support development of novel interventions.

Spirituality and optimism: a holistic approach to component-based, self-management treatment for HIV.

For people living with HIV (PLWH), spirituality and optimism have a positive influence on their health, can slow HIV disease progression, and can improve quality of life. Our aim was to describe longitudinal changes in spirituality and optimism after participation in the SystemCHANGE™-HIV intervention. Upon completion of the intervention, participants experienced an 11.5 point increase in overall spiritual well-being (p = 0.036), a 6.3 point increase in religious well-being (p = 0.030), a 4.8 point increase in existential well-being (p = 0.125), and a 0.8 point increase in total optimism (p = 0.268) relative to controls. Our data suggest a group-based self-management intervention increases spiritual well-being in PLWH.

Age, stress, and isolation in older adults living with HIV.

People living with HIV (PLWH) have increasingly longer life spans. This age group faces different challenges than younger PLWH, which may include increased stress and social isolation. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the age and sex of PLWH are associated with measures of physiologic stress, perceived stress, and social isolation. In this cross-sectional study, we enrolled 102 PLWH equally into four groups divided by age (younger or older than 50 years) and gender. Participants completed well-validated survey measurements of stress and isolation, and their heart rate variability over 60 minutes was measured by Holter monitor. The mean (SD) Perceived Stress Scale score was 17.4 (6.94), mean Visual Analog Stress Scale score was 3.51 (2.79), and mean Hawthorne Friendship Scale score, a measure of social isolation, was 17.03 (4.84). Mean heart rate variability expressed as the SD of successive N-N intervals was 65.47 (31.16) msec. In multivariable regression models that controlled for selected demographic variables, there was no relationship between the Perceived Stress Scale and age (coefficient = -0.09, p =-0.23) or female gender (coefficient = -0.12, p = 0.93); however, there was a modest relationship between female gender and stress using the Visual Analog Stress Scale (coefficient = 1.24, p = 0.05). Perceived Stress was negatively associated with the Hawthorne Friendship score (coefficient = -0.34, p = 0.05). Hawthorne Friendship score was positively associated with younger age (coefficient = 0.11, p = 0.02). Age was the only independent predictor of physiologic stress as measured by heart rate variability (coefficient = -1.3, p < 0.01). Our findings suggest that younger PLWH may experience more social isolation; however, age-related changes in heart rate variability do not appear to be related to perceived stress or social isolation. Future longitudinal research is required to more thoroughly understand this relationship and its impact on the health of PLWH.

The Rationale, Design, and Initial Efficacy of SystemCHANGE™ -HIV: A Systems-Based Intervention to Improve Physical Activity in People Living with HIV.

The purpose of this paper was to describe SystemCHANGE™-HIV, a novel self-management intervention for people living with HIV (PLWH) and provide evidence of its initial efficacy to improve physical activity. The rationale and design of the SystemCHANGE™-HIV intervention were reviewed. Intervention detail, including its historical use, learning exercises and content, were provided. Forty PLWH participated in this pilot study, using a randomized clinical trial design. Intervention participants increased their physical activity by 300 Metabolic Equivalent minutes per week, compared to the control condition. Additionally, 70% of intervention participants increased their physical activity, whereas 65% of control subjects either had no change or experienced a decrease in physical activity. SystemCHANGE™-HIV is an innovative intervention for PLWH, representing a new paradigm in health behavior change. Findings support its potential to increase physical activity in PLWH. Future work should refine and rigorously test the effect of this intervention.

Improving sleep hygiene behavior in adults living with HIV/AIDS: a randomized control pilot study of the SystemCHANGE(TM)-HIV intervention.

AIM: The aim of this study was to test the feasibility of a novel, evidence-based intervention SystemCHANGE-HIV on sleep outcomes. BACKGROUND: Insomnia and sleep disturbances affect an estimated 74% of people living with HIV (PLWH) and is a distressing consequence of HIV disease. METHODS: We conducted a two-group randomized control study with 40 PLWH. Outcomes included change in: sleep duration, sleep fragmentation index, sleep efficiency, and self-reported sleep quality. RESULTS: Participants rated the intervention as highly feasible. The intervention group experienced a 10minute/night increase in sleep time, a 2.3%-point increase in sleep efficiency, a 2.0%-point decrease in sleep fragmentation, relative to the control group, based on the model estimates of the treatment effect. CONCLUSIONS: A behavioral change intervention focusing on sleep is feasible in PLWH. The intervention group had improved sleep compared to the control group. Future work should test the efficacy of a refined SystemCHANGE-HIV on sleep.

Measuring HIV self-management in women living with HIV/AIDS: a psychometric evaluation study of the HIV Self-management Scale.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate the HIV Self-management Scale for women, a new measure of HIV self-management, defined as the day-to-day decisions that individuals make to manage their illness. METHODS: The development and validation of the scale was undertaken in 3 phases: focus groups, expert review, and psychometric evaluation. Focus groups identified items describing the process and context of self-management in women living with HIV/AIDS (WLHA). Items were refined using expert review and were then administered to WLHA in 2 sites in the United States (n = 260). Validity of the scale was assessed through factor analyses, model fit statistics, reliability testing, and convergent and discriminate validity. RESULTS: The final scale consists of 3 domains with 20 items describing the construct of HIV self-management. Daily self-management health practices, social support and HIV self-management, and chronicity of HIV self-management comprise the 3 domains. These domains explained 48.6% of the total variance in the scale. The item mean scores ranged from 1.7 to 2.8, and each domain demonstrated acceptable reliability (0.72-0.86) and stability (0.61-0.85). CONCLUSIONS: Self-management is critical for WLHA, who constitute over 50% of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and have poorer health outcomes than their male counterparts. Methods to assess the self-management behavior of WLHA are needed to enhance their health and wellbeing. Presently, no scales exist to measure HIV self-management. Our new 20-item HIV Self-management Scale is a valid and reliable measure of HIV self-management in this population. Differences in aspects of self-management may be related to social roles and community resources, and interventions targeting these factors may decrease morbidity in WLHA.