Public Housing Relocations and Relationships of Changes in Neighborhood Disadvantage and Transportation Access to Unmet Need for Medical Care.

Introduction: Cross-sectional research suggests that neighborhood characteristics and transportation access shape unmet need for medical care. This longitudinal analysis explores relationships of changes in neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and trans- portation access to unmet need for medical care.

Methods: We analyzed seven waves of data from African American adults (N = 172) relocating from severely distressed public housing complexes in Atlanta, Georgia.

Changes in healthcare access and utilization among participants in a public housing relocation program in Atlanta, Georgia.

Using survey data from participants in a public housing relocation program in Atlanta, Georgia, we examine post-relocation changes in healthcare access (having a usual source of care, having an unmet need) and utilization (receiving a medical exam). Although participants moved to safer, less impoverished neighborhoods, some participants experienced improvements in access and utilization whereas others experienced declines. The supply of healthcare providers in the new neighborhood and having health insurance were associated with improvements in access for this population.

Public Housing Relocations and Partnership Dynamics in Areas With High Prevalences of Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Background: We investigated the implications of one structural intervention--public housing relocations--for partnership dynamics among individuals living areas with high sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevalence. High-prevalence areas fuel STI endemicity and are perpetuated by spatially assortative partnerships.

Methods: We analyzed 7 waves of data from a cohort of black adults (n = 172) relocating from 7 public housing complexes in Atlanta, Georgia.

Changing Places and Partners: Associations of Neighborhood Conditions With Sexual Network Turnover Among African American Adults Relocated From Public Housing.

Neighborhood conditions and sexual network turnover have been associated with the acquisition of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). However, few studies investigate the influence of neighborhood conditions on sexual network turnover. This longitudinal study used data collected across 7 visits from a predominantly substance-misusing cohort of 172 African American adults relocated from public housing in Atlanta, Georgia, to determine whether post-relocation changes in exposure to neighborhood conditions influence sexual network stability, the number of new partners joining sexual networks, and the number of partners leaving sexual networks over time.

People and places: Relocating to neighborhoods with better economic and social conditions is associated with less risky drug/alcohol network characteristics among African American adults in Atlanta, GA.

Background: Few studies assess whether place characteristics are associated with social network characteristics that create vulnerability to substance use.

Methods: This longitudinal study analyzed 7 waves of data (2009-2014) from a predominantly substance-using cohort of 172 African American adults relocated from public housing complexes in Atlanta, GA, to determine whether post-relocation changes in exposure to neighborhood conditions were associated with four network characteristics related to substance use: number of social network members who used illicit drugs or alcohol in excess in the past six months ("drug/alcohol network"), drug/alcohol network stability, and turnover into and out of drug/alcohol networks. Individual- and network-level characteristics were captured via survey and administrative data were used to describe census tracts where participants lived.

"I Created Something New with Something that Had Died": Photo-Narratives of Positive Transformation Among Women with HIV.

A dearth of research describes the strengths of women living with HIV (WLH), yet understanding these strengths can promote women's well-being and healthy behavior. This analysis explores positive life transformations among WLH through photo-stories. WLH (N = 30) from three U.

Impact of public housing relocations: are changes in neighborhood conditions related to STIs among relocaters?

Background: Cross-sectional and ecologic studies suggest that place characteristics influence sexual behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Using data from a predominately substance-misusing cohort of African American adults relocating from US public housing complexes, this multilevel longitudinal study tested the hypothesis that participants who experienced greater postrelocation improvements in neighborhood conditions (i.e.

Changes in Exposure to Neighborhood Characteristics are Associated with Sexual Network Characteristics in a Cohort of Adults Relocating from Public Housing.

Ecologic and cross-sectional multilevel analyses suggest that characteristics of the places where people live influence their vulnerability to HIV and other sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). Using data from a predominately substance-misusing cohort of African-American adults relocating from US public housing complexes, this multilevel longitudinal study tested the hypothesis that participants who experienced greater post-relocation improvements in economic disadvantage, violent crime, and male:female sex ratios would experience greater reductions in perceived partner risk and in the odds of having a partner who had another partner (i.e.

Human papillomavirus awareness among HIV-infected drug users in two urban areas.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the cause of cervical and anal cancer. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and cocaine use are associated with increased risk for HPV infection and associated diseases, but little is known about HIV-infected drug users' awareness of HPV. We investigate HPV awareness among HIV-infected, sexually-active crack cocaine users from two inner-city hospitals in Florida and Georgia during their inpatient stays.

The aftermath of public housing relocations: relationships between changes in local socioeconomic conditions and depressive symptoms in a cohort of adult relocaters.

USA is experiencing a paradigm shift in public housing policy: while policies used to place people who qualified for housing assistance into spatially concentrated housing complexes, they now seek to geographically disperse them, often to voucher-subsidized rental units in the private market. Programs that relocate residents from public housing complexes tend to move them to neighborhoods that are less impoverished and less violent. To date, studies have reached conflicting findings about the relationship between public housing relocations and depression among adult relocaters.

Perspectives of middle-aged African-American women in the Deep South on antiretroviral therapy adherence.

Despite evidence of stabilization in some areas of the USA, HIV infection in black women is not declining in the Deep South. Using a phenomenological approach to qualitative inquiry, we investigated women's experiences influencing their adherence to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in an urban setting. Inclusion criteria specified black women who had been aware of their HIV status for at least two years and were engaged in HIV outpatient care.

The aftermath of public housing relocation: relationship to substance misuse.

Introduction: Several cross-sectional studies have examined relationships between neighborhood characteristics and substance misuse. Using data from a sample of African-American adults relocating from U.S.

Public housing relocations in Atlanta, Georgia, and declines in spatial access to safety net primary care.

This analysis investigates changes in spatial access to safety-net primary care in a sample of US public housing residents relocating via the HOPE VI initiative from public housing complexes to voucher-subsidized rental units; substance misusers were oversampled. We used gravity-based models to measure spatial access to care, and used mixed models to assess pre-/post-relocation changes in access. Half the sample experienced declines in spatial access of ≥ 79.

Access to health services and sexually transmitted infections in a cohort of relocating African American public housing residents: an association between travel time and infection.

Background: High incidence and prevalence of sexually transmitted infection (STI) in blacks have been attributed to multiple factors. However, few articles have discussed spatial access to healthcare as a driver of disparities. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the relationship between travel time to a healthcare provider and the likelihood of testing positive for 1 of 3 STIs in a sample of adults living in public housing.

An HIV/AIDS fellowship program for minority physicians.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS epidemic disproportionately affects African Americans and Latinos in the United States, but there are limited numbers of minority physicians providing primary medical care to these patients. An HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) Minority Clinical fellowship began training the first cohort of minority physicians in July 2007 to help provide care in the face of these health disparities. This report chronicles the experience of Dr Loida Bonney as a fellow caring for people living with HIV/AIDS at the Grady Health System in urban Atlanta, Georgia, and demonstrates that such fellowships can be successful mechanisms to train physicians with expertise in HIV medicine.

Racial/ethnic sexual health disparities among incarcerated women.

Rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in women in U.S. corrections facilities are higher than rates in community samples.

Correlates of acceptance of a hypothetical gonorrhea vaccine by incarcerated women.

Objectives: This study sought to identify correlates of acceptance of a hypothetical Neisseria gonorrhea (GC) vaccine in a high-risk sample of incarcerated women.

Goals: The goal of this study was to inform efforts to promote acceptance of STI vaccines in development.

Study Design: This study consisted of a cross-sectional survey using a structured questionnaire.

Vaccination in juvenile correctional facilities: state practices, hepatitis B, and the impact on anticipated sexually transmitted infection vaccines.

Objectives: Juvenile correctional facilities are an ideal setting to provide preventive vaccines to adolescents who are at risk. In many instances of incarceration, facilities overcome the need for parental consent by making young people wards of the state and the state providing consent. The authors investigated current state practices for administering hepatitis B vaccine to incarcerated adolescents.