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Chain Peer Referral Approach for HIV Testing Among Adolescents in Kisumu County, Kenya

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Abstract

New HIV infections among adolescents continues to be a large public health burden in sub-Saharan Africa, with few adolescents accessing HIV testing and counseling (HTC) services. We evaluated the effect of a peer referral program among adolescents in Kisumu county, Kenya in accessing HTC. Female adolescents aged 15 to 19 years were recruited from three health clinics in Kisumu County. They, in turn, recruited their peers for HTC by handing out referral cards. Referrals would then recruit their peers and this peer-referral repeated for approximately 5 months. The 252 female index seeds showed a relatively higher-risk profile for HIV compared to the 792 referral participants. The referral system yielded an increased proportion of first-time adolescent testers from 13.1% among index seeds to 42.7% among the second wave of referrals. However, the peer referral system ultimately did not increase the absolute number of adolescents Queryaccessing HTC. Future strategies should consider these findings to better target those with undiagnosed HIV infection.

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under Award Number R25TW009343 and the University of California Global Health Institute (UCGHI). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH or UCGHI. Additionally, this work was supported by the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, Accelerating Children’s HIV/AIDS Treatment (ACT) Initiative, Grant Number A114918.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Nairobi, Kenya

    Patricia Ong’wen, Benard O. Samba, Nicollate Okoko & Elizabeth A. Bukusi

  2. Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Michelle Moghadassi & Craig R. Cohen

  3. Department of Pediatrics, Georgetown University, 3800 Reservoir Road, NW, Washington, DC, 20007, USA

    Hilary T. Wolf

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  1. Patricia Ong’wen
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  2. Benard O. Samba
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Correspondence to Hilary T. Wolf.

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Ong’wen, P., Samba, B.O., Moghadassi, M. et al. Chain Peer Referral Approach for HIV Testing Among Adolescents in Kisumu County, Kenya. AIDS Behav 24, 484–490 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-019-02560-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-019-02560-2

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