The Healthy Young Men's Cohort: Health, Stress, and Risk Profile of Black and Latino Young Men Who Have Sex with Men (YMSM).

Young men who have sex with men (YMSM), especially YMSM of color, are at increased risk for a wide range of threats to their health and well-being. In this study, we recruited and surveyed an urban sample of 448 young African American/Black (Black), Hispanic/Latino (Latino), and multi-racial/ethnic YMSM, ages 16-24 years (mean = 22.3 years), about stressful life events, their health and mental health, their access to and utilization of care, and their involvement in risk-related behaviors.

Engaging Young Men in the HIV Prevention and Care Continua: Experiences From Young Men of Color Who Have Sex With Men.

Sexual minority individuals experience barriers to receiving equitable health care. Research also indicates that young men who have sex with men (YMSM), particularly young men of color, have limited engagement in the HIV care continuum and there are significant disparities across the continuum. This study aims to uncover how providers can engage YMSM of color in all forms of care, including primary care and HIV prevention through an HIV prevention continuum.

Viewpoints from families for improving transition from NICU-to-home for infants with medical complexity at a safety net hospital: a qualitative study.

Background: We have limited information on families' experiences during transition and after discharge from the neonatal intensive care unit.

Methods: Open-ended semi-structured interviews were conducted with English or Spanish- speaking families enrolled in Medicaid in an urban high-risk infant follow up clinic at a safety-net center, which serves preterm and high-risk term infants. We generated salient themes using inductive-deductive thematic analysis.

A Focus on the HIV Care Continuum Through the Healthy Young Men's Cohort Study: Protocol for a Mixed-Methods Study.

Background: No group is at greater risk for acquiring HIV than young men who have sex with men (YMSM), particularly black or African American (AA) and Hispanic or Latino (L) YMSM living in inner cities, who account for the largest number of new HIV infections each year. Although pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), postexposure prophylaxis (PEP), and treatment as prevention hold enormous promise for changing the course of the epidemic, AA/L-YMSM are the least likely population to be receiving primary health care and HIV prevention/care and are the least likely to be using PrEP and PEP.

Objective: The overarching aim of the Healthy Young Men's (HYM) cohort study is to conduct longitudinal research with a cohort of AA/L-YMSM to prevent new HIV infections, reduce transmission, and reduce HIV/AIDS-related disparities by focusing on successful engagement in care.

Perceptions of Family Among Low-Income Patients With Diabetes in a Text-Based Mobile Health Intervention.

Background: Diabetes disproportionately affects the US Latino population, due to socioeconomic pressures, genetics, reduced access to care and cultural practices. While efforts to improve self-care through interventions incorporating family are highly rated by Latinos, family can be both supportive and obstructive. To develop effective interventions, this role needs clarification.

Setting an Agenda to Address Intimate Partner Violence Among Young Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Conceptual Model and Review.

Research investigating intimate partner violence (IPV) among sexual minorities is limited. The research that does exist has found that rates of IPV are similar to or higher than the rates found for heterosexual women, the most commonly studied population in this area. This limited research has resulted in a dearth of prevention/intervention programs targeted for these populations.

The Community Mentorship Program: Providing Community-Engagement Opportunities for Early-Stage Clinical and Translational Scientists to Facilitate Research Translation.

Problem: A goal of the Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC-CTSI) at the University of Southern California and Children's Hospital Los Angeles is to train early-stage clinical and translational scientists (CTSs) to conduct research that improves the health of diverse communities. This goal aligns well with the Institute of Medicine's recommendations emphasizing community engagement in biomedical research that facilitates research translation. The Community Mentorship Program (CMP), created to complement community-engaged research didactics, matches CTSs with community mentors who help them identify and complete community-engaged experiences that inform their research.

Enhancing Dissemination, Implementation, and Improvement Science in CTSAs through Regional Partnerships.

Background And Importance: Challenges in healthcare policy and practice have stimulated interest in dissemination and implementation science. The Institute of Medicine Committee on the Clinical Translational Science Award (CTSA) program recommended expanding the CTSA program's investment and activity in this domain. Guidance is needed to facilitate successful growth of DII science infrastructure, activity and impacts.

Effects of cross-sex hormone treatment on transgender women and men.

Objective: To describe weight, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP), lipids, and hormone levels in transgender women and men presenting for initiation of cross-sex hormone therapy at a community clinic in the United States.

Methods: Twenty-three transgender women (persons assigned male at birth who identify as female and want to use estrogen to develop female secondary sex characteristics) and 34 transgender men (persons assigned female at birth who identify as male and want to use testosterone to develop male secondary sex characteristics) presenting for initiation of hormone therapy at a community health center were enrolled. Body mass index, BP, lipids, and sex hormone levels were measured at baseline and 6 months.

Preventing Filipino Mental Health Disparities: Perspectives from Adolescents, Caregivers, Providers, and Advocates.

Filipino Americans are the second largest immigrant population and second largest Asian ethnic group in the U.S. Disparities in youth behavioral health problems and the receipt of mental health services among Filipino youth have been documented previously.

Attitudes and perceptions of biomedical HIV prevention methods: voices from young men who have sex with men.

In the third decade of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, the prevalence rates of new HIV infections among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) continue to increase. As new and emerging HIV prevention methods are developed, it is important to understand the perceptions of this vulnerable population-as they may be an ideal target for these intervention methods. This pilot study provides an overview of YMSM of color's awareness and perceptions of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and rectal microbicides (RM).

"Same-sex relationship in a straight world": individual and societal influences on power and control in young men's relationships.

Young men who have sex with men (YMSM) continue to experience higher rates of HIV infection than other populations. Recently, there have been recommendations to consider HIV prevention at the dyadic or couple level. Using a dyadic approach to HIV prevention would also address an unaddressed concern related to intimate partner violence (IPV) among YMSM.

Perceptions of successful cues to action and opportunities to augment behavioral triggers in diabetes self-management: qualitative analysis of a mobile intervention for low-income Latinos with diabetes.

Background: The increasing prevalence of diabetes and the associated cost of managing this complicated disease have a significant impact on public health outcomes and health expenditures, especially among resource-poor Latino patients. Mobile health (mHealth) may be the solution to reaching this group and improving their health.

Objective: In this qualitative study, we examined nuances of motivation, intention, and triggers to action effected by TExT-MED (Trial to Examine Text Messaging for Emergency Department patient with Diabetes), an mHealth intervention tailored to low-income, urban Latinos with diabetes.

High-risk sexual activity in the House and Ball community: influence of social networks.

Objectives: We investigated the roles of House membership and the influence of social and sexual network members on the sexual risk behavior of men in the Los Angeles House and Ball community.

Methods: From February 2009 to January 2010, male participants (n = 233) completed interviewer-assisted surveys during a House meeting or Ball event. We used logistic regression to model the effects of sexual network size, influence of sexual network members, House membership status, and their interactions on high-risk sex.

A profile of nonurgent emergency department use in an urban pediatric hospital.

Objectives: This study was designed to develop a descriptive profile of parents and caregivers who bring their children to the emergency department (ED) for nonurgent issues and to explore the reasons for presenting to an urban hospital pediatric ED for nonurgent conditions. Such work is necessary to develop effective interventions.

Methods: A total of 106 parents/caregivers whose child was triaged with a nonemergent/urgent condition completed a 15- to 20-minute computerized survey (English and Spanish) in an urban pediatric ED.

HIV prevention service utilization in the Los Angeles House and Ball communities: past experiences and recommendations for the future.

African-American young men who have sex with men and transgender persons are at elevated risk for HIV infection. House and Ball communities, networks of mostly African-American gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals who compete in modeling and dance, represent a prime venue for HIV prevention with these difficult-to-reach populations; however, little research exists on effective approaches to HIV prevention within these communities. Using a mixed-methods approach, the present study sought to document participation in HIV prevention activities of a sample from the Los Angeles House and Ball communities (n = 263) in order to inform future service development.

Laying the groundwork for an HIV prevention intervention: a descriptive profile of the Los Angeles House and Ball communities.

African American young men who have sex with men (AAYMSM) represent the largest proportion of new HIV infections among MSM. While evidence-based interventions are lacking, all too often HIV interventions are implemented in a community without thoroughly understanding its needs, risks and assets. AAYMSM are not homogenous; subgroups exist that may require different approaches to be effective.

"It's like our own little world": resilience as a factor in participating in the Ballroom community subculture.

We are well into the third decade of the HIV epidemic. While strides have been made in HIV prevention, rates for African American men who have sex with men (AAMSM) and young AAMSM continue to increase-perhaps indicating that traditional deficit-approaches of HIV prevention are not effective for all populations. Following a recent call to investigate the resiliency of young gay men, this study identifies sources of resilience and strength within the House and Ball communities, a subculture comprised primarily of AAMSM.

Community-engaged research to identify house parent perspectives on support and risk within the House and Ball scene.

This article describes a community-engaged study with the Los Angeles House and Ball scene in which the perspectives of the leaders of these communities are captured to better understand how the House and Ball communities may protect or increase its members' risks for HIV infection. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with House parents (N = 26). This study identified key features of both support (e.

Photovoice as a tool to adapt an HIV prevention intervention for African American young men who have sex with men.

Objective. HIV rates for African American young men who have sex with men (AAYMSM) have reached as much as 14.7%, compared with 2.

Use and perceptions of the internet for sexual information and partners: a study of young men who have sex with men.

The Internet has opened many doors with its accessibility to information, entertainment and web-based communities. For young men who have sex with men (YMSM), the Internet can provide access to information on relevant sexual behavior and health information, stories from other men about relationship issues, and a venue for locating potential sexual and dating partners. Understanding YMSM's motivations for going online for information, advice or sexual relationships, is important as the Internet becomes increasingly used not only as a space to find sexual partners, but also as a venue for HIV and STI interventions.

Deconstructing the complexity of substance use among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) by optimizing the role of qualitative strategies in a mixed methods study.

Qualitative data can be a powerful tool in developing interventions for substance use and other HIV-risk behaviors. Mixed methods design offers researchers the ability to obtain data that provides both breadth and depth to their research questions. However, the integration of qualitative data in mixed methods research has been limited.