180209 Intervention dose effects on outcomes of a group-level HIV prevention intervention for adjudicated adolescents

Tuesday, October 28, 2008: 11:15 AM

Heather Batson , Research and Evaluation, Public Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia, PA
Jennifer L. Lauby, PhD , Research & Evaluation, Public Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia, PA
Archana Bodas LaPollo, MPH , Research and Evaluation, Philadelphia Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia, PA
Mary Milnamow, BA , Research and Evaluation, Public Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia, PA
Akil Pierre , Philadelphia Health Management Corporation, Philadelphia, PA
BACKGROUND: PALMS is a theater-based HIV prevention intervention for minority adolescents aged 12 to 18 that uses peer actors to model appropriate behavior and facilitates problem-solving and skill-building for protective behaviors. The 3-session group intervention was delivered in juvenile justice and drug treatment facilities. Some youth did not attend all 3 sessions due to court-mandated changes in treatment. Thus attrition from the intervention was not due to participant choice.

METHODS: PALMS was evaluated by non-randomly assigning adolescent males (79% African American, 8% Latino) to intervention and control conditions. Evaluation data were collected at baseline and 6-month follow-up (80% retention). Previously reported findings documented intervention effects on increased HIV knowledge and condom-use knowledge for the whole sample, and on decreased number of sexual partners for participants ages 15-18 not living in facilities at follow-up. We used repeated measures ANOVA to examine differences in outcomes for participants who attended all three sessions (completers) and those who did not (non-completers).

RESULTS: Of 192 adolescents assigned to the intervention, 72% were completers. Completers and non-completers did not differ in age, race, or baseline sex and drug behaviors. Completers had significantly greater increases than non-completers from baseline to follow-up on HIV knowledge (p<.03) and condom-use knowledge (p<.01). Among those not in facilities at follow-up, completers decreased their number of sex partners from 4.2 at baseline to 2.3 at follow-up, versus 3.8 to 3.9 for non-completers (p<.02).

CONCLUSIONS: Multiple group sessions are essential to reinforce HIV knowledge and protective behavior skills-building, particularly with high-risk adolescents.

Learning Objectives:
1. Understand the challenges in delivering a multi-session intervention to adjudicated adolescents. 2. Describe the effects of intervention dose on knowledge and behavioral outcomes.

Keywords: Adolescents, HIV Interventions

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I assisted with instrument construction and data management for this study. I conducted evaluation outcome analysis.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.