Utilization of the Community Popular Opinion Leader (C-POL) Model in Alabama

Utilization of the Community Popular Opinion Leader (C-POL) Model to Achieve Syphilis Elimination in Alabama

Community members within the treatment city will report: 1)engaging in fewer sexual risk practices; 2)significantly higher condom use; 3) significantly higher rates of STD care seeking (including STD screening behaviors); 4) fewer having STDs in the past 6 months; 5) significantly higher awareness scores regarding syphilis and other STDs, as compared with those in the comparison city.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Risk Behavior; Sexually Transmitted Diseases
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Community-Popular Opinion Leader Model; Behavioral: Diffusion of Innovations

Detailed Description

The C-POL in Alabama project is and intervention study which sought to impact the health behaviors of community residents who live in zip codes that have high syphilis morbidity. The study is being implemented in Birmingham and Montgomery with shelter clients.

The intervention model used for this study is the Popular Opinion Leader (POL) model, which is effective at reducing new HIV infections. The intent of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a diffusion model (e.g. POL) at reducing syphilis infections in affected communities.

For the intervention, community members identified as popular opinion leaders were recruited and trained to share accurate information about syphilis transmission, symptoms, testing, treatment and prevention. Prior to intervention implementation and several times after, community members were given a survey and screened for syphilis as well as 2-3 additional STDs. During each assessment, cross-sections of the community members were sampled.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 600
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Alabama
    • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35294-0022
      • University of Alabama, Birmingham

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Clients who utilized two community homeless shelters in the affected community. The affected community was one that had significant syphilis morbidity at the onset of the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• None

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Changes in syphilis morbidity in affected community

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Changes in risk behavior and health care seeking behavior

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Collaborators: University of Alabama at Birmingham
• Investigators: Study Chair: Samantha Williams, Ph.D., CDC/NCHSTP/DSTDP/BIRB; Principal Investigator: Diane Grimley, Ph.D., University of Alabama at Birmingham

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: October 1, 2002
• Study Completion: July 1, 2005

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 1, 2005
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 1, 2005
• First Posted (Estimate): December 2, 2005

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): May 31, 2006
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 30, 2006
• Last Verified: December 1, 2005

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Risk behavior; Sexually transmitted diseases
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Infections; Communicable Diseases; Disease Attributes; Sexually Transmitted Diseases
• Other Study ID Numbers: CDC-NCHSTP-4087; U65/CCU422269