Interventions for HIV/AIDS prevention in African Americans

Background: The purpose of this paper was to review the HIV/AIDS interventions done in heterosexual African Americans and suggest ways of enhancing these interventions. Methods: In collecting the materials for this study, a search of CINAHL, ERIC, and MEDLINE databases was carried out for the time period of 2005 and 2010. Search terms included: HIV/AIDS, African American, Blacks, and interventions. The inclusion criteria for the studies were (1) focus on African American adults; (2) limited to heterosexual populations; (3) publication in refereed journals in the English language; (4) location of the study in the United States. Results: A total of eight studies met the inclusion criteria of which six were hospital-based and two were community-based. Five of the interventions were based on behavioral theories and three of those interventions used social cognitive theory. HIV/AIDS knowledge, risk reduction strategies, behavioral skills, condom use, self-efficacy, increase in communication about sex and goal setting were the main foci of the interventions. The review found that all the interventions were effective and there was significant behavioral change in all the interventions. Conclusions: The strengths of the interventions include the use of large samples, the post intervention follow-up, and the use of randomized control trial in design. However, there were issues relating to treatment integrity problems with subject participation and loss of subjects from the studies. Recommendations for enhancing the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS interventions in African American women are presented.