Prevalence of alcohol use by gender and HIV status in rural Uganda.

Background: Alcohol use is a major contributor to mortality and morbidity worldwide. Uganda has a high level of alcohol use per capita. Compared to men, women are less likely to consume alcohol globally; however, women who drink have increased risks for co-occurring conditions, including depression, intimate partner violence, and HIV.

"The burden is upon your shoulders to feed and take care of your children, not religion or culture": qualitative evaluation of participatory community dialogues to promote family planning's holistic benefits and reshape community norms on family success in rural Uganda.

Background: Family planning has significant health and social benefits, but in settings like Uganda, is underutilized due to prevalent community and religious norms promoting large family size and gender inequity. Family Health = Family Wealth (FH = FW) is a multi-level, community-based intervention that used community dialogues grounded in Campbell and Cornish's social psychological theory of transformative communication to reshape individual endorsement of community norms that negatively affect gender equitable reproductive decision-making among couples in rural Uganda.

Methods: This study aimed to qualitatively evaluate the effect of FH = FW's community dialogue approach on participants' personal endorsement of community norms counter to family planning acceptance and gender equity.

Associations Between Alcohol Use, Antiretroviral Therapy Use, and Viral Load Suppression Among People Living with HIV in Rural Central Uganda.

Alcohol use among people living with HIV (PWH) is common and may negatively affect engagement in HIV care. We evaluated the relationships between alcohol use, ART use, and viral suppression among PWH in Uganda. PATH/Ekkubo was a trial evaluating a linkage to HIV care intervention in four Ugandan districts, Nov 2015-Sept 2021.

Effects of a community-based, multi-level family planning intervention on theoretically grounded intermediate outcomes for couples in rural Uganda: Results from a mixed methods pilot evaluation.

Objectives: This study tested the theoretically grounded conceptual model of a multi-level intervention, Family Health = Family Wealth (FH = FW), by examining FH = FW's effect on intermediate outcomes among couples in rural Uganda. FH = FW is grounded in the social-ecological model and the social psychological theory of transformative communication.

Design: A pilot quasi-experimental controlled trial.

Balancing career goals and parenthood desires: results from a survey of undergraduate pre-health students at a hispanic-serving institution in Texas.

Objective: To examine family planning and fertility experiences and views, as well as desired parenthood timing and career plans, of diverse undergraduate pre-health students.

Participants: 266 pre-health undergraduate students attending a Hispanic-Serving Institution in South Texas.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, online survey with a purposive sample of undergraduate students and analyzed data descriptively.

Understanding the Effects of Trauma Exposure, Life Stress, Intimate Partner Violence, and Depression on Sexually Transmitted Infection Risk in Post-Conflict Liberia.

In sub-Saharan Africa, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a public health concern. The impact of STIs are exacerbated in post-conflict low- and middle-income countries, such as Liberia, where exposure to traumatic events is prevalent and access to mental health services are limited. Following a syndemics framework, this study used regression analyses to explore the independent, additive, and multiplicative effects of four psychosocial conditions (exposure to war-related traumatic events, intimate partner violence [IPV], stressful life events, and depressive symptoms) on self-reported STIs.

Stakeholder perspectives on the Kisoboka intervention: A behavioral and structural intervention to reduce hazardous alcohol use and improve HIV care engagement among men living with HIV in Ugandan fishing communities.

Background: East Africa's fishing communities experience a high burden of two interrelated and frequently co-occurring health issues: HIV and hazardous alcohol use. Nearly two-thirds of Ugandan fisherfolk men meet the criteria for harmful alcohol use. We developed a multilevel intervention to reduce hazardous alcohol use and improve HIV care engagement among fisherfolk men living with HIV (LWHIV) in Wakiso district, Uganda.

Development of a multi-level family planning intervention for couples in rural Uganda: key findings & adaptations made from community engaged research methods.

Background: Uganda has among the highest fertility rates in the world and multi-level barriers contribute to the low contraceptive use.

Objective: The objective of this study was to develop a culturally and socially relevant, community-based intervention to increase contraceptive use among couples in rural Uganda through community-engaged research methods. This study reports on the community-engaged research that informed the intervention's content and structure and the final content of the intervention; the evaluation of the pilot intervention will be reported upon completion.

A Scoping Review on Gender/Sex Differences in COVID-19 Vaccine Intentions and Uptake in the United States.

Objective: To explore the empirical literature on gender/sex differences in vaccine acceptance among U.S.-based adults and adolescents in approximately the first 2 years of the pandemic.

A pilot quasi-experimental controlled trial of a community-based, multilevel family planning intervention for couples in rural Uganda: evidence of feasibility, acceptability, and effect on contraceptive uptake among those with an unmet need for family planning.

Objectives: Effective interventions to reduce the unmet need for family planning in low-income settings are limited. This study aimed to establish the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effects of Family Health=Family Wealth (FH=FW), a multilevel intervention aimed to increase high-efficacy contraceptive uptake among couples wanting to delay pregnancy.

Study Design: A pilot quasi-experimental controlled trial was conducted in rural Uganda, with 70 couples wanting to delay pregnancy but not using contraceptives (n = 140).

Exploring the effects of COVID-19 on family planning: results from a qualitative study in rural Uganda following COVID-19 lockdown.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has likely affected the already high unmet need for family planning in low- and middle-income countries. This qualitative study used Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Service Use as a theoretical framework to explore the possible ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic, including the impact of a 3-month government mandated lockdown, might affect family planning outcomes in rural Uganda. A secondary aim was to elicit recommendations to improve family planning service delivery in the context of COVID-19.

Gender Role Discrepancy Stress and COVID-19 Prevention Behaviors Among Men in the United States.

Purpose: To examine the associations between gender role discrepancy (non-conformity to socially prescribed masculine gender role norms) and discrepancy stress (distress arising from this discrepancy) on COVID-19 prevention behaviors among men, and the potential moderating effects of race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and income on these relationships.

Design: A national online survey was conducted between May and June 2021.

Setting: The United States.

The "Family Health = Family Wealth" intervention: study protocol for a pilot quasi-experimental controlled trial of a multi-level, community-based family planning intervention for couples in rural Uganda.

Background: Uganda has one of the highest fertility rates globally, but only 30% of women report using an effective method of contraception. Community-based, multi-level interventions are needed to help couples in rural Uganda overcome barriers to contraceptive use.

Methods: This study will pilot test the Family Health = Family Wealth intervention, a multi-level, community-based intervention employing transformative community dialogues, which use facilitated discussion to reshape community norms that influence family planning acceptance, to alter individual attitudes and the perception of community norms that discourage family planning.

Spatial Analysis of the Alcohol, Intimate Partner Violence, and HIV Syndemic Among Women in South Africa.

The co-occurrence of and synergistic interactions between substance abuse, violence, and HIV, known as the "SAVA syndemic," is thought to be a driver of women's elevated risk for HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. This study uses data from the 2016 South African Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) and the 2016 South African Census to examine geospatial associations between alcohol use, intimate partner violence (IPV), unprotected sex, and HIV status among a population-based sample of 8528 South African women (age 15-49). Results support the geographic clustering of alcohol use, unprotected sex, and IPV, but not HIV, and geospatial clustering of HIV alone.

Mechanisms Linking Masculine Discrepancy Stress and the Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence Among Men in the United States.

Although studies show that masculine discrepancy stress (i.e., the intrapsychic strain associated with failing to meet internalized masculine ideals) is associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration, little is known about the processes underlying this association.

Assessing LGBTQ+ stigma among healthcare professionals: An application of the health stigma and discrimination framework in a qualitative, community-based participatory research study.

This qualitative, community-based participatory research (CBPR) study examines the occurrence of LGBTQ+ stigma in healthcare guided by the Health Stigma and Discrimination Framework. We conducted focus groups with healthcare professionals, analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. Stigma drivers included knowledge deficits and transphobia.

Prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms, and points of intervention, in rural central Uganda: results from a cross-sectional population-based survey of women and men.

Objectives: The present study aimed to identify the prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms and potential intervention points among women and men from a population-based sample in rural central Uganda.

Design: A cross-sectional study.

Setting: Four districts in rural Uganda.

Applying the Health Stigma and Discrimination Framework to Assess HIV Stigma among Health Care Professionals: A Mixed Methods, Community-Based Participatory Research Study.

HIV stigma in health care disrupts the care continuum and negatively affects health outcomes among people living with HIV. Few studies explore HIV stigma from the perspective of health care providers, which was the aim of this mixed-methods, community-based participatory research study. Guided by the Health Stigma Discrimination Framework, we conducted an online survey and focus group interviews with 88 and 18 participants.

Psychosocial interventions for reducing alcohol consumption in sub-Saharan African settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Harmful alcohol use is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa (sSA); however, the effects of non-pharmacological alcohol interventions in this region are unknown.

Design: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the available literature through 14 March 2019 was undertaken. Two authors extracted and reconciled relevant data and assessed risk of bias.

A systematic review of interventions for reducing heavy episodic drinking in sub-Saharan African settings.

Objective: Assess the effect of non-pharmacological alcohol interventions on reducing heavy episodic drinking (HED) outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: A systematic review of the available literature through August 19, 2020 was conducted. Randomized and non-randomized controlled trials testing non-pharmacological interventions on alcohol consumption in sub-Saharan Africa were eligible for inclusion.

Examining the Influence of Trauma Exposure on HIV Sexual Risk Between Men and Women in Post-Conflict Liberia.

The adverse impact of exposure to war-related traumatic events on mental health is well documented. Few studies, however, have focused on the impact of exposure to war-related traumatic events on HIV sexual risk behavior in post-conflict countries such as Liberia. We investigated whether exposure to war-related traumatic events was linked to HIV sexual risk behavior, and identified potential mediators of this relationship, including stressful life events, problematic alcohol use, and intimate partner violence (IPV) among women and men in Liberia.

Dimensions of Masculine Norms, Depression, and Mental Health Service Utilization: Results From a Prospective Cohort Study Among Emerging Adult Men in the United States.

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of multidimensional masculine norms ("status," "toughness," "anti-femininity") on depression and mental health service utilization among emerging adult men in the Northeast United States. This study examines substance use and hostility as secondary outcomes and depression status as an effect moderator on the relationship between masculine norms and mental health service utilization. This study used data from a prospective cohort study that followed 18- to 25-year-old heterosexual men over 6 months.

Trauma Exposure and Intimate Partner Violence Among Young Pregnant Women in Liberia.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global threat to women's health and may be elevated among those exposed to traumatic events in post-conflict settings, such as Liberia. The purpose of this study was to examine potential mediators between lifetime exposure to traumatic events (i.e.

Substance use and its effect on antiretroviral treatment adherence among male fisherfolk living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.

Background: Fisherfolk are a most-at-risk population for HIV being prioritized for the scale up of HIV treatment in Uganda. Heavy alcohol use and potential drug use may be a major barrier to treatment adherence for men in this setting.

Objective: This study examines the prevalence of substance use, and its influence on antiretroviral treatment (ART) adherence, among male fisherfolk on ART in Wakiso District, Uganda.

A syndemic of psychosocial and mental health problems in Liberia: Examining the link to transactional sex among young pregnant women.

Transactional sex may be a driver of the rising HIV epidemic in Liberia, especially among young women. The goal of this study was to explore the independent and additive effects of psychosocial conditions on engagement in transactional sex among 191 pregnant women in Monrovia, Liberia. Between March and August 2016, women receiving prenatal services completed a cross-sectional structured questionnaire.