Facilitators and barriers to PrEP use among straight and LGB young adults experiencing homelessness

Abstract

Young adults experiencing homelessness (YAEH) are up to 12 times more likely to contract HIV than their housed peers. One important HIV prevention tool is pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), though few studies examine YAEH PrEP use, particularly among those who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB). This study surveyed 160 YAEH about sexual risk behaviors, knowledge about and interest in using PrEP, and facilitators and barriers to PrEP use. Chi-Squared tests assessed if participants varied on these factors by sexual orientation. LGB YAEH were more likely to have heard of and be interested in using PrEP, as well as report access to free sexual healthcare, counseling about sex life, and concerns about possible medication interactions if they became HIV + as important motivating factors for PrEP use. Straight YAEH were more likely to report concerns about PrEP protectiveness as important. These findings, though preliminary, have important implications for YAEH HIV prevention programs.

Keywords:

• HIV prevention
• homelessness
• PrEP
• sexual orientation

Ethics approval

The questionnaire and methodology for this study was approved by the International Review Board (IRB) committee of the University of Denver.

Consent to participate

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Authors’ contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Anamika Barman-Adhikari. Data analyses were performed by Jarrod Call, Donny Gerke, and Anamika Barman-Adhikari. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Jarrod Call and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Acknowledgments

Thank you to the young people who participated in this study, without whom this work would not be possible.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by Professional Research Opportunities for Faculty (PROF), University of Denver.