Abstract
KC Life 360: Improving employment and housing for persons living with HIV
APHA 2022 Annual Meeting and Expo
Background: Housing and employment are key factors in the health and wellbeing of persons living with HIV (PLWH) in the United States. Approximately 14% of low-income PLWH report housing instability or temporary housing, and up to 70% report being unemployed. The purpose of this study was to examine the outcomes of an intervention to improve housing and employment for PLWH in the Midwest.
Methods: Participants (N=87) were recruited from the Kansas City metropolitan area to participate in a one-year intervention to improve housing and employment. All individuals were living with HIV and were not stably housed, fully employed, nor fully engaged in HIV medical care. A series of generalized estimating equations were conducted using client-level longitudinal data to examine how housing, employment, viral load, and retention in care changed over time.
Results: Housing improved over one year, with fewer individuals reporting homeless and more reporting having stable housing (Odds Ratio [OR]: 23.5, p<0.001). Employment also improved from baseline to follow-up, with more individuals reporting full-time employment (OR: 1.9, p<0.01). Viral suppression improved over the 12 months (OR: 1.6, p<0.001). No change in retention in care was detected over the 12 months (OR: 0.9, p=0.47).
Discussion: Client navigation seems to be a promising intervention to improve housing and employment for PLWH in the Midwest. Additional research is needed on the impact of service coordination on client-level outcomes. Future studies should be conducted on the scalability of client navigation interventions to improve the lives of low-income, underserved PLWH.