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Overview

RESPOND Carolinas (Rapid Response to Incident HIV Infection through Social Network Strategies and Molecular Epidemiology to Inform Partner Services) is a 5-year R01 research study (2022 – 2027) and is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The purpose of the study is to learn more about how people from gender and sexual minority groups engage in HIV care and prevention services in the Charlotte and Midlands regions of North and South Carolina. Compared to other regions of the US, the South carries the greatest burden of HIV incidence and diagnoses.

This research uses mixed methods data to improve the local response to HIV infections by integrating Partner Services, social network recruitment, and HIV genetic cluster analysis. You can learn more about these topics and the research study by visiting the Social Network Strategies and Additional Resources page. RESPOND will also evaluate the implementation of an Enhanced Social Network Strategy (eSNS) for increasing engagement in HIV services. Within North Carolina, this includes five counties (Mecklenburg, Gaston, Union, Anson, and Cabarruss), with some public health outreach activities extending into the Midlands region of South Carolina. Outcomes from implementing eSNS in the Charlotte region will be compared to routine Partner Services in the Raleigh region. Measures span effectiveness, network characterization, and implementation science outcomes.

RESPOND Carolinas Overall Goals

  1. Assess how genetic sequence analysis added to standard surveillance impacts spatial and demographic features of HIV networks in high burden regions of North and South Carolina
  2. Identify barriers and facilitators to engagement in HIV services (prevention and/or care) for Black men who have sex with men and Black women who are transgender, and who are in HIV networks with recent transmission
  3. Evaluate an intensified Partner Services response using an enhanced social network strategy (eSNS) that leverages HIV genetic cluster analysis to characterize networks

Research Activities: Present, Future, Past

Present

Personal Network Survey

We are recruiting Charlotte community members who have recently engaged in public health or sexual health services for our Personal Network Survey. This is a confidential online survey that guides participants in describing their immediate social circles, including people who provide them with social support, and/or who have been sexual or drug use partners. The survey takes about 45 minutes to complete and participants receive a $40 gift card upon completion. Learn more about the Personal Network Survey here.

Future

Enhanced Social Network Strategy (eSNS)

Are you interested in being a Community Ambassador?

Join our Research Study that aims to help Community Ambassadors encourage People in their Circle (friends, peers, and loved ones) to access HIV care.

Coming soon: Registration Form

Past

Community Member Interviews

From fall of 2023 through spring of 2024, we conducted in-depth interviews with members of key populations in the Charlotte community who had recently engaged in public health or sexual health services. Through these interviews, we aim to learn more about people’s experiences with getting services, including barriers they faced, and what things would help people to engage more in services, such as different ways to recruit their peers for HIV testing or care.

Molecular Epidemiology

Data from public health surveillance systems will be collected to help characterize recent HIV transmission clusters. To investigate interstate patterns of HIV transmission, surveillance data from North Carolina’s EDSS database will be merged with data from South Carolina’s eHARS. Learn more about what molecular epidemiology is by visiting our page with resources about social network strategies and molecular epidemiology.

Community Leadership Interviews

In-depth interviews with leaders at public health agencies and community organizations, and people engaged in HIV services, have contributed to RESPOND’s qualitative research component. Interviews were held in early 2023 and provided diverse insights into barriers and facilitators to greater engagement with HIV services and input on how to adapt an Enhanced Social Network Strategy to the Charlotte region.

Focus Groups

Focus groups with public health professionals were held in December 2022 and led by qualitative research specialists at the UNC Center for AIDS Research, who conduct the study’s qualitative interviews and analysis. Participants included public health investigators, peer support specialists, and social workers, who shared their experiences directly engaging clients in HIV care and prevention services.

Study Location

North and South Carolina

The RESPOND study focuses on HIV response efforts in North Carolina and South Carolina, specifically in the Charlotte metropolitan region. Mecklenburg County, where Charlotte is located, is one of 50 priority jurisdictions identified under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative, which aims to reduce new HIV infections by 90% by 2030.

Map of Study Setting