Addressing Mental Health Barriers in HIV Care Coordination Is Crucial to Providing Optimal HIV/AIDS Care.

For people with HIV (PWH) who have psychological comorbidities, effective management of mental health issues is crucial to achieving and maintaining viral suppression. Care coordination programs (CCPs) have been shown to improve outcomes across the HIV care continuum, but little research has focused on the role of care coordination in supporting the mental health of PWH. This study reports qualitative findings from the Program Refinements to Optimize Model Impact and Scalability based on Evidence (PROMISE) study, which evaluated a revised version of an HIV CCP for Ryan White Part A clients in New York City. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 30 providers and 27 clients from 6 CCP-implementing agencies to elucidate barriers and facilitators of program engagement. Transcripts were analyzed for key themes related to clients' mental health needs and providers' successes and challenges in meeting these needs. Providers and clients agreed that insufficiently managed mental health issues are a common barrier to achieving and maintaining viral suppression. Although the CCP model calls for providers to address clients' unmet mental health needs primarily through screening and referrals to psychiatric and/or psychological care, both clients and providers reported that the routine provision of emotional support is a major part of providers' role that is highly valued by clients. Some concerns raised by providers included insufficient training to address clients' mental health needs and an inability to document the provision of emotional support as a delivered service. These findings suggest the potential value of formally integrating mental health services into HIV care coordination provision. ClinicalTrials.gov protocol number: NCT03628287.

Study protocol for data to suppression (D2S): a cluster-randomised, stepped-wedge effectiveness trial of a reporting and capacity-building intervention to improve HIV viral suppression in housing and behavioural health programmes in New York City.

INTRODUCTION: With progress in the 'diagnose', 'link' and 'retain' stages of the HIV care continuum, viral suppression (VS) gains increasingly hinge on antiretroviral adherence among people with HIV (PWH) retained in care. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that unsuppressed viral load among PWH in care accounts for 20% of onward transmission. HIV intervention strategies include 'data to care' (D2C)-using surveillance to identify out-of-care PWH for follow-up. However, most D2C efforts target care linkage, not antiretroviral adherence, and limit client-level data sharing to medical (versus support-service) providers. Drawing on lessons learnt in D2C and successful local pilots, we designed a 'data-to-suppression' intervention that offers HIV support-service programmes surveillance-based reports listing their virally unsuppressed clients and capacity-building assistance for quality-improvement activities. We aimed to scale and test the intervention in agencies delivering Ryan White HIV/AIDS Programme-funded behavioural health and housing services. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: To estimate intervention effects, this study applies a cross-sectional, stepped-wedge design to the intervention's rollout to 27 agencies randomised within matched pairs to early or delayed implementation. Data from three 12-month periods (pre-implementation, partial implementation and full implementation) will be examined to assess intervention effects on timely VS (within 6 months of a report listing the client as needing follow-up for VS). Based on projected enrolment (n=1619) and a pre-implementation outcome probability of 0.40-0.45, the detectable effect size with 80% power is an OR of 2.12 (relative risk: 1.41-1.46). ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study was approved by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's institutional review board (protocol: 21-036) with a waiver of informed consent. Findings will be disseminated via publications, conferences and meetings including provider-agency representatives. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT05140421.

Evaluation of the Revised Versus Original Ryan White Part A HIV Care Coordination Program in a Cluster-Randomized, Stepped-Wedge Trial.

BACKGROUND: To address challenges with delivery of an evidence-based HIV care coordination program (CCP), the New York City Health Department initiated a CCP redesign. We conducted a site-randomized stepped-wedge trial to evaluate effectiveness of the revised versus the original model. SETTING: The CCP is delivered in New York City hospitals, community health centers, and community-based organizations to people experiencing or at risk for poor HIV outcomes. METHODS: The outcome, timely viral suppression (TVS), was defined as achievement of viral load <200 copies/mL within 4 months among enrollees with unsuppressed viral load (≥200 copies/mL). Seventeen original-CCP provider agencies were randomized within matched pairs to early (August 2018) or delayed (May 2019) starts of revised-model implementation. Data from 3 periods were examined to compare revised versus original CCP effects on TVS. The primary analysis of the intervention effect applied fully conditional maximum likelihood estimation together with an exact, conditional P -value and an exact test-based 95% CI. We assigned each trial enrollee the implementation level of their site (based on a three-component measure) and tested for association with TVS, adjusting for period and study arm. RESULTS: Over 3 nine-month periods, 960 individuals were eligible for trial inclusion (intention to treat). The odds ratio of TVS versus no TVS comparing revised with original CCP was 0.88 (95% CI: 0.45, 1.7). Thus, the revised program yielded slightly lower TVS, although the effect was statistically nonsignificant. TVS was not significantly associated with revised-CCP implementation level. CONCLUSION: Program revisions did not increase TVS, irrespective of the implementation level.

Characterizing Ryan White Part A-funded support service utilization patterns and their association with viral suppression among people with HIV in New York City.

Use of HIV-related support services has been demonstrated to improve outcomes for people living with HIV. Further exploring patterns of use could help identify how and in what settings additional HIV care and treatment adherence support could be provided. We aimed to identify support service utilization patterns and examine their association with viral load suppression (VLS). Our sample comprised 6,581 people with HIV who received Ryan White Part A support services for basic needs (food and nutrition, legal, harm reduction, housing services) in New York City from 1/2013 to 12/2016, but had not received services specifically targeting HIV care and treatment adherence. Five support service utilization classes were identified using latent class analysis, the majority of which were characterized by the predominant use of concrete services (e.g., food assistance). Compared with the low-intensity, sporadic concrete service use class, clients in all other classes had lower odds of VLS in a 365-day follow-up period, but this disadvantage disappeared with adjustment for confounding variables indicative of need. Our findings underscore the impact of need-related barriers on VLS and suggest that long-term service utilization beyond the one year period of this study may be required to diminish their negative effect on HIV outcomes.

HIV Care Coordination promotes care re-engagement and viral suppression among people who have been out of HIV medical care: an observational effectiveness study using a surveillance-based contemporaneous comparison group.

BACKGROUND: Medical care re-engagement is critical to suppressing viral load and preventing HIV transmission, morbidity and mortality, yet few rigorous intervention studies address this outcome. We assessed the effectiveness of a Ryan White Part A-funded HIV Care Coordination Program relative to 'usual care,' for short-term care re-engagement and viral suppression among people without recent HIV medical care. METHODS: The Care Coordination Program was launched in 2009 at 28 hospitals, health centers, and community-based organizations in New York City. Designed for people with HIV (PWH) experiencing or at risk for poor HIV outcomes, the Care Coordination Program provides long-term, comprehensive medical case management utilizing interdisciplinary teams, structured health education and patient navigation. The intervention was implemented as a safety-net services program, without a designated comparison group. To evaluate it retrospectively, we created an observational, matched cohort of clients and controls. Using the HIV surveillance registry, we identified individuals meeting program eligibility criteria from December 1, 2009 to March 31, 2013 and excluded those dying prior to 12 months of follow-up. We then matched clients to controls on baseline status (lacking evidence of viral suppression, consistently suppressed, inconsistently suppressed, or newly diagnosed in the past 12 months), start of follow-up and propensity score. For this analysis, we limited to those out of care at baseline (defined as having no viral load test in the 12 months pre-enrollment) and still residing within jurisdiction (defined as having a viral load or CD4 test reported to local surveillance and dated within the 12-month follow-up period). Using a GEE model with binary error distribution and logit link, we compared odds of care re-engagement (defined as having ≥ 2 laboratory events ≥ 90 days apart) and viral suppression (defined as having HIV RNA ≤ 200 copies/mL on the most recent viral load test) at 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: Among 326 individuals out of care at baseline, 87.2% of clients and 48.2% of controls achieved care re-engagement (Odds Ratio: 4.53; 95%CI 2.66, 7.71); 58.3% of clients and 49.3% of controls achieved viral suppression (Odds Ratio: 2.05; 95%CI 1.30, 3.23). CONCLUSIONS: HIV Care Coordination shows evidence of effectiveness for care and treatment re-engagement.

Mortality among clients in the New York city HIV Care Coordination Program (CCP): incidence and associated clinical factors.

PURPOSE: We examined psychosocial factors (housing, drug use, incarceration history or mental health) and care factors (comorbidities and acute care) associated with all-cause and HIV-related mortality while enrolled in the New York City Ryan White HIV Care Coordination Program (CCP), an intensive case management program for people with barriers to HIV care and treatment. METHODS: We used hazards regression (HR) to understand factors associated with mortality. RESULTS: 8,135 people (13,479.4 person years [PY]) enrolled in the CCP from March 2011 to December 2016. The all-cause mortality rate while enrolled was 28.8 per 1000 PY (N = 388), with 43% of deaths (N = 167) related to HIV (12.4 per 1000 PY). Controlling for demographics and clinical status, the variables associated with increased hazards of all-cause mortality included hospitalizations or emergency-department visits prior to enrollment (aHRHospitalizations: 2.54; 95% Confidence Interval 2.07-3.11 and aHRED: 1.54; 1.24-1.92) or a diabetes or Hepatitis C diagnosis at enrollment (aHRDiabetes: 1.80; 1.36-2.37 and aHRHCV: 1.78; 1.37-2.30). These factors also increased the hazards of HIV-related mortality. CONCLUSIONS: CCP and similar case management programs should systematically screen enrolling clients for a history of acute care and comorbidities, as they may be important markers of need for more intensive engagement and follow-up to prevent death.

Service utilization and HIV outcomes among transgender women receiving Ryan White Part A services in New York City.

BACKGROUND: Prior research has found evidence of gender disparities in U.S. HIV healthcare access and outcomes. In order to assess potential disparities in our client population, we compared demographics, service needs, service utilization, and HIV care continuum outcomes between transgender women, cisgender women, and cisgender men receiving New York City (NYC) Ryan White Part A (RWPA) services. METHODS: The analysis included HIV-positive clients with an intake assessment between January 2016 and December 2017 in an NYC RWPA services program. We examined four service need areas: food and nutrition, harm reduction, mental health, and housing. Among clients with the documented need, we ascertained whether they received RWPA services targeting that need. To compare HIV outcomes between groups, we applied five metrics: engagement in care, consistent engagement in care, antiretroviral therapy (ART) use, point-in-time viral suppression, and durable viral suppression. RESULTS: All four service needs were more prevalent among transgender women (N = 455) than among cisgender clients. Except in the area of food and nutrition services, timely (12-month) receipt of RWPA services to meet a specific assessed need was not significantly more or less common in any one of the three client groups examined. Compared to cisgender women and cisgender men, a lower proportion of transgender women were durably virally suppressed (39% versus 52% or 50%, respectively, p-value < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Compared with cisgender women and cisgender men, transgender women more often presented with basic (food/housing) and behavioral-health service needs. In all three groups (with no consistent between-group differences), assessed needs were not typically met with the directly corresponding RWPA service category. Targeting those needs with RWPA outreach and services may support the National HIV/AIDS Strategy 2020 goal of reducing health disparities, and specifically the objective of increasing (to ≥90%) the percentage of transgender women in HIV medical care who are virally suppressed.

STEPS to Care: Translating an Evidence-Informed HIV Care Coordination Program Into a Field-Tested Online Practice Improvement Toolkit.

Increasing care engagement is essential to meet HIV prevention goals and achieve viral suppression. It is difficult, however, for agencies to establish the systems and practice improvements required to ensure coordinated care, especially for clients with complex health needs. We describe the theory-driven, field-informed transfer process used to translate key components of the evidence-informed Ryan White Part A New York City Care Coordination Program into an online practice improvement toolkit, STEPS to Care (StC), with the potential to support broader dissemination. Informed by analyses of qualitative and quantitative data collected from eight agencies, we describe our four phases: (1) review of StC strategies and key elements, (2) translation into a three-part toolkit: Care Team Coordination, Patient Navigation, and HIV Self-Management, (3) pilot testing, and (4) toolkit refinement for national dissemination. Lessons learned can guide the translation of evidence-informed strategies to online environments, a needed step to achieve wide-scale implemention.

PROMISE (Program Refinements to Optimize Model Impact and Scalability based on Evidence): a cluster-randomised, stepped-wedge trial assessing effectiveness of the revised versus original Ryan White Part A HIV Care Coordination Programme for patients with barriers to treatment in the USA.

INTRODUCTION: Growing evidence supports combining social, behavioural and biomedical strategies to strengthen the HIV care continuum. However, combination interventions can be resource-intensive and challenging to scale up. Research is needed to identify intervention components and delivery models that maximise uptake, engagement and effectiveness. In New York City (NYC), a multicomponent Ryan White Part A-funded medical case management intervention called the Care Coordination Programme (CCP) was launched at 28 agencies in 2009 in order to address barriers to care and treatment. Effectiveness estimates based on >7000 clients enrolled by April 2013 and their controls indicated modest CCP benefits over 'usual care' for short-term and long-term viral suppression, with substantial room for improvement. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Integrating evaluation findings and CCP service-provider and community-stakeholder input on modifications, the NYC Health Department packaged a Care Coordination Redesign (CCR) in a 2017 request for proposals. Following competitive re-solicitation, 17 of the original CCP-implementing agencies secured contracts. These agencies were randomised within matched pairs to immediate or delayed CCR implementation. Data from three 9-month periods (pre-implementation, partial implementation and full implementation) will be examined to compare CCR versus CCP effects on timely viral suppression (TVS, within 4 months of enrolment) among individuals with unsuppressed HIV viral load newly enrolling in the CCR/CCP. Based on current enrolment (n=933) and the pre-implementation outcome probability (TVS=0.54), the detectable effect size with 80% power is an OR of 2.75 (relative risk: 1.41). ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study was approved by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Institutional Review Board (IRB, Protocol 18-009) and the City University of New York Integrated IRB (Protocol 018-0057) with a waiver of informed consent. Findings will be disseminated via publications, conferences, stakeholder meetings, and Advisory Board meetings with implementing agency representatives. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Registered with ClinicalTrials.gov under identifier: NCT03628287, V.2, 25 September 2019; pre-results.

Impact of an HIV Care Coordination Program on the Timeliness of Viral Suppression and Immune Recovery Among Clients Newly Diagnosed with HIV.

We compared the time to immune recovery and viral suppression (VS) among people newly diagnosed with HIV who enrolled in the HIV Care Coordination Program (CCP), a comprehensive medical case management program, with a propensity matched group of newly diagnosed people who did not enroll. CCP enrollees had more rapid VS (≤ 200 copies/mL) [hazards ratio (HR) 1.17; 95% confidence interval 1.02-1.34] but no more rapid immune recovery (≥ two successive CD4 counts > 500 cells/mm3) (HR 0.98; 0.84-1.13). Relative to usual care, the CCP may expedite VS (though not immune recovery) for newly diagnosed HIV patients and therefore lower forward transmission risk.

Cost-effectiveness of HIV care coordination scale-up among persons at high risk for sub-optimal HIV care outcomes.

BACKGROUND: A study of a comprehensive HIV Care Coordination Program (CCP) showed effectiveness in increasing viral load suppression (VLS) among PLWH in New York City (NYC). We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of a scale-up of the CCP in NYC. METHODS: We incorporated observed effects and costs of the CCP into a computer simulation of HIV in NYC, comparing strategy scale-up with no implementation. The simulation combined a deterministic compartmental model of HIV transmission with a stochastic microsimulation of HIV progression, and was calibrated to NYC HIV epidemiological data from 1997 to 2009. We assessed incremental cost-effectiveness from a health sector perspective using 2017 $US, a 20-year time horizon, and a 3% annual discount rate. We explored two scenarios: (1) two-year average enrollment and (2) continuous enrollment. RESULTS: In scenario 1, scale-up resulted in a cost-per-infection-averted of $898,104 and a cost-per-QALY-gained of $423,721. In sensitivity analyses, scale-up achieved cost-effectiveness if effectiveness increased from RR1.11 to RR1.37 or costs decreased by 41.7%. Limiting the intervention to persons with unsuppressed viral load prior to enrollment (RR1.32) attenuated the cost reduction necessary to 11.5%. In scenario 2, scale-up resulted in a cost-per-infection-averted of $705,171 and cost-per-QALY-gained of $720,970. In sensitivity analyses, scale-up achieved cost-effectiveness if effectiveness increased from RR1.11 to RR1.46 or program costs decreased by 71.3%. Limiting the intervention to persons with unsuppressed viral load attenuated the cost reduction necessary to 38.7%. CONCLUSION: Cost-effective CCP scale-up would require reduced costs and/or focused enrollment within NYC, but may be more readily achieved in cities with lower background VLS levels.

Associations between drug use patterns and viral load suppression among HIV-positive individuals who use support services in New York City.

BACKGROUND: Drug use (DU) represents a significant barrier to maintaining physical health among people living with HIV (PLWH). Few studies, however, have examined the relationship between DU over time and HIV treatment outcomes. Such studies are needed because an individual's risk of poor health outcomes may vary with their DU behaviors. We examined associations between DU patterns over time and unsuppressed viral load (VL). METHODS: The sample included 7896 PLWH in New York City who completed ≥3 substance use assessments over a 24-month period. DU was defined as crystal methamphetamine, crack/cocaine, heroin, and/or recreational prescription medication use in the last three months. Four behavior patterns were constructed: (1) persistent use (DU reported on each assessment); (2) intermittent use-active (DU reported on the third, but not all previous assessments); (3) intermittent use-inactive (DU reported previously with no DU reported on the third assessment); (4) persistent non-use (no DU reported on any assessment). Unsuppressed VL (>200 copies/mL) was assessed based on the last VL value in the New York City HIV Surveillance Registry in the 12 months following an individual's third DU assessment. RESULTS: Compared with persistent non-users, individuals with intermittent use-inactive (aOR = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.03-1.49), intermittent use-active (aOR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.36-2.06), and persistent use (aOR = 2.21, 95% CI = 1.69-2.89) were significantly more likely to have unsuppressed VL. CONCLUSIONS: While providers may be more likely to intervene with persistent or active drug users, our findings suggest the importance of addressing the risk of poor HIV treatment outcomes among those with any DU behavior.

Impact of an HIV Care Coordination Program on Durable Viral Suppression.

BACKGROUND: To assess long-term effectiveness of an intensive and comprehensive Ryan White Part A-funded HIV Care Coordination Program recruiting people living with HIV with a history of suboptimal HIV care outcomes. METHODS: We merged programmatic data on CCP clients with surveillance data on all adults diagnosed with HIV. Using propensity score matching, we identified a contemporaneous, non-CCP-exposed comparison group. Durable viral suppression (DVS) was defined as regular viral load (VL) monitoring and all VLs ≤200 copies per milliliter in months 13-36 of follow-up. RESULTS: Ninety percent of the combined cohort (N = 12,414) had ≥1 VL ≤200 during the follow-up period (December 1, 2009-March 31, 2016), and nearly all had routine VL monitoring, but only 36.8% had DVS. Although DVS did not differ overall (relative risk: 0.99, 95% confidence interval: 0.95 to 1.03), CCP clients without any VL suppression (VLS) in the 12-month pre-enrollment showed higher DVS versus "usual care" recipients (21.3% versus 18.4%; relative risk: 1.16, 95% confidence interval: 1.04 to 1.29). CONCLUSIONS: Enrollment in an intensive intervention modestly improved DVS among those unsuppressed before CCP enrollment. This program shows promise for meeting treatment-as-prevention goals and advancing progress along the HIV care continuum, if people without evidence of VLS are prioritized for CCP enrollment over those with recent evidence of VLS. Low overall DVS (<40%) levels underscore a need for focused adherence maintenance interventions, in a context of high treatment access.

Short-term effectiveness of HIV care coordination among persons with recent HIV diagnosis or history of poor HIV outcomes.

The New York City HIV Care Coordination Program (CCP) combines multiple evidence-based strategies to support persons living with HIV (PLWH) at risk for, or with a recent history of, poor HIV outcomes. We assessed the comparative effectiveness of the CCP by merging programmatic data on CCP clients with population-based surveillance data on all New York City PLWH. A non-CCP comparison group of similar PLWH who met CCP eligibility criteria was identified using surveillance data. The CCP and non-CCP groups were matched on propensity for CCP enrollment within four baseline treatment status groups (newly diagnosed or previously diagnosed and either consistently unsuppressed, inconsistently suppressed or consistently suppressed). We compared CCP to non-CCP proportions with viral load suppression at 12-month follow-up. Among the 13,624 persons included, 15∙3% were newly diagnosed; among the 84∙7% previously diagnosed, 14∙2% were consistently suppressed, 28∙9% were inconsistently suppressed, and 41∙6% were consistently unsuppressed in the year prior to baseline. At 12-month follow-up, 59∙9% of CCP and 53∙9% of non-CCP participants had viral load suppression (Relative Risk = 1.11, 95%CI:1.08-1.14). Among those newly diagnosed and those consistently unsuppressed at baseline, the relative risk of viral load suppression in the CCP versus non-CCP participants was 1.15 (95%CI:1.09-1.23) and 1.32 (95%CI:1.23-1.42), respectively. CCP exposure shows benefits over no CCP exposure for persons newly diagnosed or consistently unsuppressed, but not for persons suppressed in the year prior to baseline. We recommend more targeted case finding for CCP enrollment and increased attention to viral load suppression maintenance.

Using Registry Data to Construct a Comparison Group for Programmatic Effectiveness Evaluation: The New York City HIV Care Coordination Program.

Many nonrandomized interventions rely upon a pre-post design to evaluate effectiveness. Such designs cannot account for events external to the intervention that may produce the outcome. We describe a method to construct a surveillance registry-based comparison group, which allows for estimating the effectiveness of the intervention while controlling for secular trends in the outcome of interest. Using data from the population-based, human immunodeficiency virus Surveillance Registry in New York City, we created a contemporaneous comparison group for persons enrolled in the New York City human immunodeficiency virus Care Coordination Program (CCP) from December 2009 to March 2013. Inclusion in the Registry-based (non-CCP) comparison group required meeting CCP eligibility criteria. To control for secular trends in the outcome, we randomly assigned persons in the non-CCP, Registry-based comparison group a pseudoenrollment date such that the distribution of pseudoenrollment dates matched the distribution of enrollment dates among CCP enrollees. We then matched CCP to non-CCP persons on propensity for enrollment in the CCP, enrollment dates, and baseline viral load. Registry-based comparison group estimates were attenuated relative to pre-post estimates of program effectiveness. These methods have broad applicability for observational intervention effectiveness studies and programmatic evaluations for conditions with surveillance registries.

Identifying Key Elements to Inform the Development of an HIV Health Behavior Maintenance Intervention.

PURPOSE: To collect information that will inform the development of an intervention to support the maintenance of HIV-related health-promoting behaviors. DESIGN: Focused, in-depth individual and group interviews. SETTING: The New York City (NYC) Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and DOHMH-funded community-based organizations that primarily serve low-income people living with HIV within the five boroughs of NYC. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 42 individuals who had participated in The Positive Life Workshop-an HIV self-management intervention adapted and implemented by the NYC DOHMH. METHOD: Purposive sampling was used to recruit study participants. Five 60- to 90-minute focus groups (n = 38) and 4 individual interviews were conducted to assess motivations for and barriers to maintaining HIV-related health-promoting behaviors and to elicit feedback on the content and format for the proposed maintenance intervention. Thematic analysis was used to summarize the data. RESULTS: Participants reported that relationships with family, a responsibility to protect others from HIV, and faith/spirituality supported the maintenance of health-promoting behaviors. Barriers to behavior maintenance included substance use and mental health issues. Meeting in small groups was also highlighted as a motivator to sustaining health behaviors, particularly in decreasing isolation and receiving affirmation from others. CONCLUSION: Participants identified several factors that could be incorporated into an intervention to support HIV-related health-promoting behavior maintenance that could supplement existing HIV self-management interventions.

Come as You Are: Improving Care Engagement and Viral Load Suppression Among HIV Care Coordination Clients with Lower Mental Health Functioning, Unstable Housing, and Hard Drug Use.

Lower mental health functioning, unstable housing, and drug use can complicate HIV clinical management. Merging programmatic and surveillance data, we examined characteristics and outcomes for HIV Care Coordination clients enrolled between December 2009 and March 2013. For clients diagnosed over 12 months before enrollment, we calculated post- versus pre-enrollment relative risks for short-term (12-month) care engagement and viral suppression. Both outcomes significantly improved in all subgroups, including those with lower mental health functioning, unstable housing, or hard drug use. Analyses further stratified within barrier-affected groups showed a tendency toward greater improvement when that barrier was reduced during the follow-up year.

Recent Tobacco Smoking is Associated with Poor HIV Medical Outcomes Among HIV-Infected Individuals in New York.

Tobacco smoking is associated with adverse health effects among people living with HIV (PLWH), including a higher risk of cancer and cardiovascular problems. Further, there is evidence that PLWH are two to three times more likely to smoke than the general population. The aim of this study was to examine the association between tobacco smoking and biomarkers of HIV disease progression, including unsuppressed viral load (viral load >200 copies/mL) and low CD4 cell count (<200 cells/mm(3)). Recent tobacco smoking was reported by 40 % (n = 5942) of 14,713 PLWH enrolled in Ryan White Part A programs in the New York City metropolitan area. In multivariate analyses controlling for sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, recent tobacco smoking was independently associated with unsuppressed viral load (AOR = 1.38, CI 1.26-1.50) and low CD4 cell count (AOR = 1.12, CI 1.01-1.24). Findings suggest the importance of routine assessments of tobacco use in clinical care settings for PLWH.

The Association Between Food Insufficiency and HIV Treatment Outcomes in a Longitudinal Analysis of HIV-Infected Individuals in New York City.

BACKGROUND: To date, there have been few longitudinal studies of food insecurity among people living with HIV (PLWH). Food insufficiency (FI) is one dimension of the food insecurity construct that refers to periods of time during which individuals have an inadequate amount of food intake because of limited resources. The aim of this analysis was to examine the relationship between FI and HIV treatment outcomes among HIV-infected individuals in New York City (NYC). METHODS: Associations between FI ("consistent"--food insufficient on both of the last 2 assessments, "inconsistent"--food insufficient on 1 of the last 2 assessments, or neither) and clinical indicators of HIV disease progression (viral load > 200 copies per milliliter, CD4 count < 200 cells per cubic millimeter) were analyzed for NYC Ryan White Part A food and nutrition program clients who were matched to the NYC HIV Surveillance Registry and completed 2 FI assessments between November 2011 and June 2013. RESULTS: Among 2,118 PLWH in food and nutrition programs, 61% experienced consistent FI and 25% experienced inconsistent FI. In multivariate analyses controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, consistent FI was independently associated with unsuppressed viral load (adjusted odds ratio = 1.6, confidence interval: 1.1 to 2.5). Consistent FI was only associated with low CD4 counts at the bivariate level. CONCLUSIONS: Future studies should examine biological, structural, and psychosocial factors that may explain the relationship between FI and HIV treatment outcomes to inform intervention development. Persistent FI among food and nutrition program clients suggests that services are needed to address underlying needs for financial stability (eg, vocational counseling) for PLWH.