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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

María Luisa Zúñiga, PhD¹, Estela Blanco, BA², Paulina Martínez¹, Steffanie Strathdee, PhD³, and Allen Gifford, MD⁴. (1) Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Department 0927, La Jolla, CA 92093-0907, 619-681-0689, mzuniga@ucsd.edu, (2) Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Department 0927, La Jolla, CA 92093-0927, (3) Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Department 0622, La Jolla, CA 92093-0622, (4) VA Center for Health Quality, Outcomes & Economics Research, Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Hospital (152), Bld 70, Bedford, MA 01730

Background: Latinos are underrepresented in HIV/AIDS clinical trials in the U.S. Participation of minority populations in HIV trials can improve generalization of results to diverse populations. We studied HIV clinical trials participation barriers in HIV+ Latinas living in the US-Mexico border region.

Methods: 40 HIV+ Latinas and 10 HIV service providers from clinics in Southern California participated in the study. Simple descriptive statistics were generated and Chi-square analysis was used to explore differences between women who had and had not participated in a clinical trial.

Results: HIV+ Latinas were Mexican-born women (70%), preferred Spanish (75%), averaged 38 years of age (range, 21 - 60), and reported household income ≤$15,000/year (62%). Sixty-five percent made at least one round trip border crossing in the last year and 15% reported current residence in Mexico. We found no significant differences between women who had and had not participated in a clinical trial across language preference, age, education and border crossings frequency (p≥0.05). Almost 63% of Latinas perceived barriers to clinical trials related to individual characteristics including fear, shame (vergüenza) and denial of disease. While only 10% of Latinas mentioned system barriers (e.g. lack of transportation and language-appropriate services), 70% of providers thought that system barriers impeded participation.

Conclusions: HIV stigma was reported by many Latinas while providers did not mention this as a barrier. Differences in perceptions of barriers to clinical trials participation should be further explored. Improved understanding of individual and system barriers to clinical trials participation in a bi-national context is warranted.

Learning Objectives:

• 1). Identify clinical trials access issues faced by HIV+ Latinas who live or work along the Southern California border with Mexico. 2). Discuss approaches to assessing barriers to clinical trials participation. 3). Articulate policy and programmatic challenges to providing care for persons living and working in the US-Mexico border region.

Keywords: Clinical Trials, Latino Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered