141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Online Program

282660
Soap opera video episodes streamed to smartphones in a randomized controlled trial to reduce HIV sex risk in young urban African American/black women


Tuesday, November 5, 2013 : 9:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.

Rachel Jones, PhD, RN, FAAN, School of Nursing, Institute on Urban Health Research and Practice, Bouve College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA
Donald R. Hoover, PhD, Statistics & Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ
Lorraine Lacroix, MPH, School of Nursing, Institue on Urban Health Research and Practice, Bouve College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA
     
Background: We tested the efficacy of “Love, Sex, and Choices”(LSC), a 12-week soap opera video series created to reduce HIV risk in the context of relationship dilemmas, in a randomized controlled trial among 238 high-risk African American/Black women, aged 18-29, in the urban Northeast.

Methods: 117 were randomized to receive 12-weekly videos of LSC streamed to smartphones. The other 121 received 12-weekly HIV prevention messages on smartphones. Baseline and post-intervention interviews at 3 and 6 months were completed by ACASI. Post intervention changes in unprotected vaginal (UVS) or anal sex (UAS) with high risk partners (HRP), measured by log transformed vaginal episode equivalent (VEE) score were compared between intervention arms. Pooled repeated measures mixed linear models of log (VEE) behavior at 3 and 6 months with baseline log (VEE) as a predictor were fit.

Results: At baseline, 99% had UVS and 44% had UAS with HRPs. Risk reduction in VEE from pre to post-baseline was significant (p < 0.001) for both groups. The magnitude of reduction did not statistically significantly differ by group p = 0.23. After adjusting for baseline log (VEE), women receiving the video intervention had 0.20 units greater reduction in log (VEE) at 3 and 6 months than equivalent women in the control group; roughly corresponding to a 20% greater reduction in behavior. However 93.1% of participants in the video group wanted the video series to continue.

Conclusions:“Love, Sex, and Choices” was popular and reduced HIV risk behavior. The comparison intervention was also viable HIV prevention intervention.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Diversity and culture
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Public health or related nursing
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the theorized effect of soap opera video in weaving sexual health promotion messages into familiar, emotion-laden contemporary sex scripts as an alternative to otherwise normative high risk sex scripts. Describe health promotion through film and identification with the heroines as they adopt new more powerful sex scripts. Discuss the results of this randomized controlled trial from the perspective of popular immersive multimedia and the potential for translation to community and clinical settings, and access via social media.

Keyword(s): African American, Women

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am associate professor at School of Nursing and Faculty Scholar at the Institutes of Urban Health Research at Northeastern University. I’m the principal investigator of multiple NIH funding awards for development and testing of soap opera videos to reduce urban women’s HIV risk on mobile devices, and published multiple peer-reviewed papers and a book chapter. My primary scientific interests are reducing women’s HIV risk through innovative methods and theories.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4048.0: HIV interventions for women