Harm reduction care for people living with HIV who use drugs
Impact of harm reduction care in HIV clinical settings on stigma and health outcomes for PLWH who use drugs
This project looks at whether harm-reduction approaches in HIV clinics reduce stigma and improve health for people living with HIV who use drugs.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11120926 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will gather information from healthcare providers in Pittsburgh and Birmingham using online surveys and interviews to learn how they practice harm-reduction approaches with patients who use drugs. They will examine provider attitudes and the quality of patient-provider relationships and connect these findings to outcomes like clinic retention, HIV and hepatitis C care, and overdose risk. The team plans about 125 web-based surveys and 20 in-depth interviews across multiple provider types such as nurses, social workers, and clinicians. The goal is to understand whether relational harm-reduction in clinic settings makes care more welcoming and less stigmatizing for people like me.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People living with HIV who use drugs and who receive care at HIV clinics—especially in Pittsburgh, PA or Birmingham, AL—are most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: People with HIV who do not use drugs, or those who get care outside the clinics and cities studied, are less likely to be directly affected by this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could make HIV clinics less stigmatizing and help people who use drugs stay in care and have better health outcomes.
How similar studies have performed: Harm-reduction services and non-punitive care have improved engagement and reduced harms in other settings, but applying relational harm-reduction within HIV clinics is only beginning to be studied.
Where this research is happening
Pittsburgh, United States
- University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hawk, Mary Elizabeth — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Hawk, Mary Elizabeth
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.