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In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, large swaths of the U.S. were under stay-at-home orders, thus preventing many individuals from leaving their homes. While previous studies have shown that such orders can be detrimental to mental health, specific mental health outcomes, such as loneliness and anxiety, have yet to be fully explored, particularly among various living situation contexts (e.g., living alone, with romantic/sexual partners, without romantic/sexual partners). The current study explores this using a mixed-methods approach. Data were collected via Amazon's M-Turk (N = 85). Kruskal-Wallis tests revealed significant differences between the three groups with respect to loneliness. Statistically significant greater levels of loneliness were found in individuals living alone compared to those living with romantic/sexual partners and those living with non-romantic/sexual partners. No significant differences in anxiety levels were detected. Qualitative analysis revealed similar themes among all groups regarding anxiety. When asked about loneliness, however, those living alone shared more about feeling isolated, unwanted feelings of solitude, and how technology only mitigates a portion of these feelings. Those living with others and sexual partners shared desires to see friends and co-workers, yet not to the severity described by individuals living alone. Romantic/sex life themes are also discussed., Author(s): Joseph M. Currin [sup.1] , Amelia E. Evans [sup.2] , Bridget M. Miller [sup.3] , Christopher Owens [sup.4] , Zachary Giano [sup.5] , Randolph D. Hubach [sup.6] Author Affiliations: [...]

A sample of 700 undergraduate university students throughout the US completed an online survey about their attitudes answering questions about their sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity (SSOGI) on their university admission form. This study examined differences between cisgender and transgender and gender diverse students in attitudes related to answering sex assigned at birth and gender identity questions, and between heterosexual students and students of diverse sexual orientations in attitudes related to answering sexual orientation questions. Overall, students indicated positive attitudes about answering SSOGI questions on their university application form, but attitudes toward sexual orientation questions were less positive. Differences were found in question/answer choice understanding (gender identity and sexual orientation), ease of answering (sex assigned at birth), offensiveness in asking (sex assigned at birth), privacy concerns (sex assigned at birth), comfort in answering (sex assigned at birth and sexual orientation), confidentiality concerns (gender identity), and importance of asking (sex assigned at birth and sexual orientation). Findings demonstrate that most respondents held positive attitudes about answering SSOGI questions and that communicating to LGBTQ+ applicants the importance of and privacy protections associated with answering SSOGI questions on university application forms might be important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because most parent-adolescent sex communication studies are from the perspectives of sexual and gender minority (SGM) adolescents rather than their parents, we surveyed 54 parents of SGM adolescents in the Southern region in the U.S. about their HIV-related parent-adolescent sex communication (PASC) practices. We compared topics discussed between the sexual activity and sexual orientation/gender identity of their adolescent. We found significant differences between parents having a sexually-active adolescent or not and parents discussing the importance of using condoms and what their adolescent should do if the adolescent contracts HIV. We provide future directions to further examine and improve PASC between parents and their SGM adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although knowledge is a salient determinant in primary care providers (PCPs) prescribing HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to adolescents, we know little about what information PCPs want about PrEP. We conducted an online mixed-method study to explore the PrEP information needs of a national sample of 351 PCPs. We analyzed data with deductive content analysis and compared themes between respondents who were aware and not aware of PrEP, knowledgeable and not knowledgeable of the prescribing guidelines, and prescribed and never prescribed PrEP to an adolescent. PCPs who were unknowledgeable about PrEP and never prescribed PrEP to an adolescent mentioned manufacturing information, indications and dosing, and contraindications and adverse reactions more so than PCPs who were aware of and prescribed PrEP. A better understanding of the information needs of PCPs could inform provider education interventions. Future research must examine the facilitators and barriers to integrating PrEP information into medical education and clinical settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary care providers (PCPs) are critical in prescribing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to adolescents at risk of HIV. More research is needed to identify facilitators and barriers PCPs encounter in prescribing PrEP to eligible adolescents post-Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. This online cross-sectional survey examined the PrEP implementation facilitators and barriers among a national sample of PCPs in the United States. PCPs (n = 502) specializing in family medicine or pediatrics were recruited from a Qualtrics panel from July 15 to August 9, 2022. We analyzed the collected data using content analysis and applied the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) to codebook creation and data analysis. We conducted a Fisher's exact chi-square test of independence to compare facilitator and barrier prevalence differences between participants who had and had not prescribed PrEP to an adolescent patient. Results demonstrate that (1) distributing prescriber-focused educational materials, (2) involving parents, (3) changing liability laws, (4) enhancing adolescent PrEP uptake and adherence, (5) changing clinical resources, and (6) using mass/social media to change community norms might be strategies that influence PCPs prescribing PrEP to eligible adolescent patients. Results from this study could facilitate the planning of hybrid implementation-effectiveness trials designed to determine the acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of implementation strategies in improving the practices of PCPs prescribing PrEP to at-risk adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: An outbreak of the monkeypox virus has been documented in the United States with most cases occurring among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM). As monkeypox cases increase among relatively rural states, current public health messaging may not resonate with rural at‐risk populations. Given this, there is a need to assess potential rural‐urban differences in monkeypox behaviors and attitudes among MSM. Methods: A total of 582 eligible MSM completed an online cross‐sectional survey between August 6 and 15, 2022. Participants answered questions about their demographics, sexual behaviors, monkeypox testing and vaccination behaviors, monkeypox media consumption and attitudes, and their intention and attitudes found in the Health Belief Model of getting the monkeypox vaccine. Rural‐urban differences in behaviors and attitudes were assessed with a chi‐square test of independence. Differences in intention to get vaccinated and Health Belief Model factors were assessed with a Mann‐Whitney U test. Findings: Rural MSM, in comparison to their urban counterparts, were found to be less likely to report modifying their behaviors to decrease monkeypox exposure, being susceptible to monkeypox, or perceiving severe consequences acquiring monkeypox. Similarly, rural MSM had a lower intention to get vaccinated for monkeypox. Conclusions: As vaccination uptake among rural populations for vaccine‐preventable diseases remains suboptimal, results from this novel study can inform the development of monkeypox prevention, testing, and vaccination messaging campaigns geared toward rural MSM and other at‐risk populations. It will be important to ensure that monkeypox prevention, testing, and vaccination interventions are available and accessible in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: HIV rates are increasing in rural areas, and adolescents are disproportionately affected. HIV pre‐exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a daily pill that is effective at preventing HIV; however, PrEP uptake among adolescents is low. PrEP is dependent on primary care providers (PCPs) prescribing it, but research has overwhelmingly sampled urban PCPs. This study compared the PrEP awareness, practices, and comfort between rural and urban family medicine physicians. Methods: A total of 256 family medicine physicians in the United States were recruited from a Qualtrics panel to complete an online cross‐sectional survey between July 15 and August 9, 2022. Participants completed items assessing their demographic characteristics and PrEP awareness, practices, and comfort. A chi‐square test of independence and multiple logistic regression were used to determine rural/urban differences. Findings: Rural family medicine physicians were less comfortable than urban family medicine physicians in providing sexual risk reduction counseling to adolescents, telling an adolescent patient their HIV test result was HIV positive, and implementing all of the PrEP clinical activities for adolescents. Conclusions: Education, skill‐building, and collaborative partnership interventions could improve the comfort levels of rural family medicine physicians in implementing the PrEP guidelines for their adolescent patients. Future research is needed to understand the factors that explain the differences in PrEP‐related attitudes and practices between urban and rural family medicine physicians. Results from such studies could inform provider‐based interventions that ultimately increase PrEP use and decrease HIV rates among rural adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although parents of sexual and gender minority (SGM) adolescents are key stakeholders in SGM adolescents using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), there is limited understanding of parental concerns and attitudes about their SGM adolescents taking PrEP. Fifty-four parents in the West South Central region of the U.S. completed an online, mixed-method, cross-sectional questionnaire to explore their concerns and questions about PrEP. Quantitative and qualitative results show that participants were more concerned about side effects, drug interactions, (non)adherence, and eligibility and duration of PrEP. Parents are less worried about picking PrEP from a pharmacy or returning to follow-up lab testing every three months. Most parents reported receiving medication information their adolescent takes from a medical provider and the media. Findings from this study can inform the development of parent-based PrEP interventions. Without further parent-based research and programming, SGM adolescents may continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HIV service providers are the primary implementers of HIV care services, but rural HIV service providers are under researched. We used an interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore rural HIV service providers' lived experiences of working in HIV care, who work in a rural region of a Midwestern state in the United States. From July to August 2019, 15 HIV service providers participated in a one-hour semi-structured telephone interview that elicited their experiences working in the rural HIV care continuum. Participants were tired of constantly educating and working to reduce HIV stigma; however, they received support from family and friends once they educated them about HIV. Participants felt they lacked control over systems and they developed emotional-based coping to address constant occupational stressors. Findings highlight the importance of resiliency and advocacy research and practice across ecological levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A pilot study was performed at a low-income emergency care clinic to assess the humoral immune response to the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine (Ad26.COV2.S) to better understand how to evaluate the COVID-19 health status of its Hispanic patient population following vaccination. Methods: This study used the Clungene® SARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM Rapid Test Cassette to determine the presence of binding antibodies resulting from the J&J COVID-19 vaccine. The Clungene test principle is based on the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein. Antibodies targeting the spike protein are considered an appropriate measure of humoral response from spike-based vaccines. Results: The study confirmed previous research that antibodies wane over time, and results are consistent with reported vaccine efficacy. There was a statistically significant relationship between the humoral immune response and demographic and health status variables. Conclusions: COVID-19 negative patients can be easily and efficiently monitored to determine the success and durability of COVID-19 vaccines in low-income minority populations. The use of simple low-cost spike targeted COVID-19 antibody lateral flow devices may serve as a useful adjunct to assist community-based physicians on the COVID-19 health status of its patients. Further research is needed to confirm the utility of this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]