Rapid HIV retesting: better ways to help adults at risk get tested more often
Official title: Transformative approaches to rapidly and efficiently test demand creation interventions to promote HIV retesting in adults at increased risk of HIV
Funded at University of California, San Francisco · NIH-11590751 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A large, practical study from UC San Francisco tests simple, low-cost nudges to help adults at risk for HIV retest more regularly.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Francisco NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Francisco, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $162,487 |
| NIH project number | 3R01MH132438-04S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11590751 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults at increased risk of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa and similar settings who are eligible for HIV retesting.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals not engaged in HIV testing or not at risk may see no direct benefit from the nudges.
What this research studies
This project uses behavioral economics to design small, low-cost prompts and reminders that encourage people at higher risk of HIV to come back for repeat testing. The team will adapt these nudges to local settings through collaboration with scientists and community members, then test multiple nudges in a large, real-world field trial where individuals are randomly assigned to different interventions. The goal is to identify which nudges most effectively increase HIV retesting rates and to understand how to implement them in real health clinics. The work builds on prior findings about why people don’t retest, including structural barriers and cognitive biases. If successful, the approach could help accelerate early diagnosis and treatment, and support broader PrEP efforts in high-risk populations.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, people at risk could retest more often, leading to earlier diagnosis and treatment and reduced HIV transmission.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work has shown nudges can change health behaviors, and this project expands those findings to HIV retesting in field trials.
Where this research is happening
-
University of California, San Francisco
San Francisco, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Chamie, Gabriel — University of California, San Francisco
- Study coordinator: Chamie, Gabriel
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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.