Men's Satisfaction with General Health Services is Associated with Future Use of HIV Testing in Malawi: A Community-Representative Survey.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, men are less likely to know their HIV status than women, leading to later treatment initiation. Little is known about how experiences with general health services affect men's use of HIV testing. We used data from a 2019 community-representative survey of men in Malawi to understand frequency and cause of men's negative health service experiences (defined as men reporting they "would not recommend" a facility) and their association with future HIV testing.

Facility-based HIV self-testing strategies may substantially and cost-effectively increase the number of men and youth tested for HIV in Malawi: results from an individual-based mathematical model.

Introduction: Malawi is rapidly closing the gap in achieving the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets, with 90% of people living with HIV in Malawi aware of their status. As we approach epidemic control, interventions to improve coverage will become more costly. There is, therefore, an urgent need to identify innovative and low-cost strategies to maintain and increase testing coverage without diverting resources from other HIV services.

Factors associated with men's health facility attendance as clients and caregivers in Malawi: a community-representative survey.

Introduction: Men have higher rates of morbidity and mortality across nearly all top ten causes of mortality worldwide. Much of this disparity is attributed to men's lower utilization of routine health services; however, little is known about men's general healthcare utilization in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: We analyze the responses of 1,116 men in a community-representative survey of men drawn from a multi-staged sample of residents of 36 villages in Malawi to identify factors associated with men's facility attendance in the last 12 months, either for men's own health (client visit) or to support the health care of someone else (caregiver visit).

Individual- and Facility-Level Factors Associated with Facility Testing among Men in Malawi: Findings from a Representative Community Survey.

(1) Background: Men frequent outpatient departments (OPD) but are underrepresented in HIV testing services throughout sub-Saharan Africa. (2) Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis on data from a community-based survey with men in rural Malawi to assess factors associated with HIV testing, and being offered testing, during men's OPD visits. We include OPD visits made by men in-need of testing as our unit of observation.

Effect of Outreach Messages on Medicaid Enrollment.

Objectives: To measure the impact of different outreach messages on health insurance enrollment among Medicaid-eligible adults.

Methods: Between March 2015 and April 2016, we conducted a series of experiments using mail-based outreach that encouraged individuals to enroll in Pennsylvania's expanded Medicaid program. Recipients were randomized to receive 1 of 4 different messages describing the benefits of health insurance.

When Primary Care Providers (PCPs) Help Patients Choose Prostate Cancer Treatment.

Background: The role of primary care providers (PCPs) in decision making around cancer care remains largely unknown. We evaluated how frequently men with localized prostate cancer report receiving help from their PCP about their treatment, and whether those men who do are less likely to receive definitive treatment.

Methods: We mailed surveys to men newly diagnosed with localized prostate cancer between 2012 and 2014 in the greater Philadelphia region.

How Men with Prostate Cancer Choose Specialists: A Qualitative Study.

Objective: The specific specialist that a patient sees can have a large influence on the type of care they receive.

Methods: We administered semistructured interviews with 47 men diagnosed with prostate adenocarcinoma between 2012 and 2014. Telephone interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using a systematic thematic approach.

Second opinions from urologists for prostate cancer: Who gets them, why, and their link to treatment.

Background: Cancer patients are encouraged to obtain second opinions before starting treatment. Little is known about men with localized prostate cancer who seek second opinions, the reasons why, and the association with treatment and quality of care.

Methods: We surveyed men who were diagnosed with localized prostate cancer in the greater Philadelphia area from 2012 to 2014.

New Medicaid Enrollees See Health and Social Benefits in Pennsylvania's Expansion.

Understanding how new Medicaid enrollees are approaching their own health and health care in the shifting health care landscape of the Affordable Care Act has implications for future outreach and enrollment efforts, as well as service planning for this population. The objective of this study was to explore the health care experiences and expectations of new Medicaid expansion beneficiaries in the immediate post-enrollment period. We conducted semistructured, qualitative interviews with a random sample of 40 adults in Philadelphia who had completed an application for Medicaid through a comprehensive benefits organization after January 1, 2015, when the Medicaid expansion in Pennsylvania took effect.

Using a Mystery-Caller Approach to Examine Access to Prostate Cancer Care in Philadelphia.

Purpose: Prior work suggests that access to health care may influence the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. Mystery-caller methods have been used previously to measure access to care for health services such as primary care, where patients' self-initiate requests for care. We used a mystery-caller survey for specialized prostate cancer care to assess dimensions of access to prostate cancer care.