An intervention to increase HIV Testing Uptake among Adolescents and Young Adults

这项研究旨在评估使用最先进的社交媒体和 游戏技术，以增加13-24岁青少年和年轻人(Aya)的艾滋病毒检测。收费率 Aya中的艾滋病毒检测很低，导致Aya中有很高比例的人呈阳性或不知道自己的艾滋病毒 感染。此外，可以在老年人中有效的公共卫生信息不能达到同样的效果 结果是阿亚。由于许多Aya高度参与社交媒体和游戏，这些技术可能 掌握着接触到这一人群的关键。虽然之前的行为改变游戏已经显示出积极的结果 通过利用游戏的诱惑性使健康教育具有娱乐性，并改变人们对 疾病预防，这一干预措施建议纳入一项新的创新，改变视频 游戏被用来增加艾滋病毒检测和与护理的联系。预期的结果是一种新的社交媒体 体验就像玩游戏一样，同时促进关于艾滋病毒风险评估、检测和联系的对话 以一种可能比传统公共卫生更容易被阿雅接受的方式进行预防 留言。我们已经开发了一款阿雅知情游戏，玩家可以在游戏中创造出和自己一样的角色 并模拟不同形式的约会和性行为，以了解在模拟的、不健康的或 危及生命的环境。一旦玩家了解到他们在游戏中承担的与艾滋病毒相关的风险，他们 可以确定附近提供艾滋病毒检测和预防服务的设施。我们试图测试这个游戏的效果 并假设使用它将导致艾滋病毒检测的增加，并导致危险行为的减少 在有感染艾滋病毒风险的阿雅中。在这个第二阶段的申请中，我们的多学科团队将招募Aya协助 通过迭代确定对现有原型的额外游戏增强的可接受性 焦点小组流程。一旦一个可接受的原型被开发出来，我们将进行游戏的试验性现场测试 在一小群Aya中进行干预，以确保可用性、可接受性和进行质量保证 测试。最后，我们将进行一项随机对照试验，以确定干预对 艾滋病毒检测吸收。我们将招募300名性行为活跃的HIV阴性Aya，并随机选择他们接受 生活模拟游戏干预或提供包含关于艾滋病毒的艾滋病毒教育材料的应用程序 以及暴露前的预防措施。我们将在6点比较两个研究组的自我报告的艾滋病毒检测 并假设与对照组相比，干预组中Aya的比例更高 进行了艾滋病毒检测。这些目标的成功实现将展示该产品将如何推动 有效实施循证行为干预，以增加艾滋病毒检测和与 青年中的预防性护理。这项核心技术的成功开发也可以修改为 适用于其他医疗条件。

This study aims to assess the acceptability, usability and efficacy of using state-of-the-art social media and game technology to increase HIV testing among adolescents and young adults (AYA) ages 13-24. Rates of HIV testing among AYA are low, resulting in high proportions of AYA who are positive or unaware of their HIV infection. Further, public health messages which can be effective in older adults do not achieve the same results in AYA. Since many AYA are highly engaged with social media and games, these technologies may hold the key to reaching this population. While previous behavior change games have shown positive results by using the compelling nature of gameplay to make health education entertaining and shift attitudes towards disease prevention, this intervention proposes to incorporate a new innovation which changes the way video games are used to increase HIV testing and linkage to care. The intended result is a novel social media experience which plays like a game while prompting dialogue about HIV risk assessment, testing, and linkage to prevention in a manner that may be more acceptable to AYA compared to traditional public health messages. We have developed an AYA-informed game in which players can create characters like themselves and model different forms of dating and sex practices to learn the consequences in a simulated, non-health or life-threatening environment. Once the players learn the HIV-related risks they have taken in the game, they can identify nearby facilities for HIV testing and prevention services. We seek to test the efficacy of this game and hypothesize that its use will result in increased HIV testing and lead to a reduction in risky behaviors among AYA at risk for HIV. In this Phase II application, our multidisciplinary team will recruit AYA to assist in determining the acceptability of additional game enhancements to the existing prototype through an iterative focus group process. Once an acceptable prototype is develop, we will conduct pilot field testing of the game intervention among a small cohort of AYA to ensure usability, acceptability and to conduct quality assurance testing. Finally, we will conduct a randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of the intervention on HIV testing uptake. We will enroll 300 sexually active HIV negative AYA and randomize them to receive either the life-simulation game intervention or provision of an app which contains HIV educational materials on HIV and pre-exposure prophylaxis. We will compare self-reported HIV testing between the two study groups at 6 months and hypothesize that a higher proportion of AYA in the intervention versus control group will have obtained HIV testing. Successful completion of these aims will demonstrate how this product may advance the effective implementation of an evidence-based behavioral intervention for increased HIV testing and linkage to preventive care among youth. Successful development of this core technology could also be revised to be applicable to other medical conditions.