HIV STOPS WITH ME: The long-term impact of a social marketing campaign on HIV secondary prevention

Background: Secondary prevention of HIV, also called “Prevention with Positives (PwP),” has been shown to improve clinical outcomes for persons infected with HIV and to reduce HIV transmission. PwP interventions have generally been delivered in clinical settings with an emphasis on skills building. HIV STOPS WITH ME (HSWM) is a PwP intervention that promotes secondary prevention at the community level using social marketing to change community norms. The campaign has been implemented in 16 U.S. jurisdictions. The goals of HSWM include increasing condom use and status disclosure by HIV positive people and reducing the stigma of HIV/AIDS. Methods: Seven evaluations of HSWM were conducted. Outputs measured were level of campaign exposure, message comprehension, impact on knowledge, attitudes and behavioral intentions. Quantitative data were analyzed using statistical tools, while thematic analysis was performed on qualitative data. Findings were then compared in order to assess the impact of the social marketing campaign over time. Results: Reach and comprehension of the campaign were high in all evaluation cities. Majorities of respondents reported that as a result of the campaign, they were more likely to use condoms (57-63%), to disclose their HIV status before sex (50-55%) and to think there is a strong, supportive HIV positive community (52-66%). Conclusions: Sustained social marketing efforts can promote secondary prevention of HIV by supporting norms and behaviors among HIV positive individuals that reduce transmission.