Effectiveness of Structured Ecosystems Therapy for Reducing HIV Risk Behaviors and Improving Treatment Adherence in HIV Infected Men Released From Prison

July 22, 2015 updated by: University of California, San Francisco

Ecosystems Therapy for Men Reintegrating Into Their Family

This study will evaluate the effectiveness of Structured Ecosystems Therapy (SET), a form of therapy that includes family and caregivers, at reducing HIV transmission risk behaviors and improving treatment adherence in HIV infected men newly released from prison.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

Individuals in prison are four times more likely to have HIV or AIDS as compared to non-incarcerated people. Once HIV infected individuals are released from prison, they have a high risk of transmitting HIV to their sexual or needle-sharing partners. Therefore, it is important to encourage HIV risk reduction behavior among such inmates who are nearing release from prison. SET is a therapy program that mobilizes family and caregivers as a way to support and encourage behavior change within an individual. This study will use a tailored SET program to meet the specific needs of prisoners who are infected with HIV. The purpose of the study is to compare the effectiveness of the tailored SET program versus an individually focused therapy program at reducing sexual and drug-related HIV transmission risk factors and increasing HIV treatment adherence in HIV infected men who have recently been released from prison.

This 12-month study will enroll HIV infected men who are being released from the California Medical Facility Prison in Vacaville, California or the San Quentin State Prison in Marin County, California. Participants will meet with study recruiters while in prison and complete questionnaires to assess sexual and drug-related HIV transmission risk behaviors and treatment adherence; they will also participate in a health education session. Participants will then be randomly assigned to either a 4-month tailored SET program or a 4-month individually focused therapy program. All participants will meet with study counselors twice while still in prison, and then weekly during the first 4 months following release from prison. Participants in the SET program will work with study counselors to tailor the program to meet their individual needs. Therapy sessions will be designed to restructure interactions and communication patterns between the participant and his support network; main goals will include reducing sexual and drug-related risk behaviors and improving HIV treatment adherence. Participants in the individually focused therapy program will focus on harm reduction, goal setting, and motivational enhancement. HIV transmission risk behaviors and treatment adherence will be assessed with surveys administered at Months 4, 8, and 12 for all participants.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

162

Phase

  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • California
      • San Francisco, California, United States, 94105
        • University of California, San Francisco

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • HIV infected
  • Scheduled to be released from the California Medical Facility Prison in Vacaville, California or from San Quentin State Prison in Marin County, California between 21 to 90 days following study entry
  • Speaks English or Spanish
  • Able to provide contact information for at least one adult who will be living in the area and is able to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Participation in the pilot study or previous enrollment in the study
  • Release into another correctional facility or other restricted environment (after the initial release from prison) that would prevent participation in the study for more than 2 weeks (e.g., drug treatment program that does not allow visitors)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Tailored SET program
tailored SET program for reducing sexual and drug-related HIV transmission risk factors and increasing HIV treatment adherence in HIV infected men who have recently been released from prison
Active Comparator: Individually focused therapy
Individually focused therapy program for reducing sexual and drug-related HIV transmission risk factors and increasing HIV treatment adherence in HIV infected men who have recently been released from prison

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
HIV transmission risk behaviors
Time Frame: 12 months
12 months
HIV-related medical adherence
Time Frame: 12 months
12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Mediators of HIV transmission risk reduction and medical adherence
Time Frame: 12 months
12 months
Recidivism to prison
Time Frame: 12 months
12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Olga Grinstead, PhD, MPH, University of California, San Francisco

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

January 1, 2005

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 23, 2006

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 23, 2006

First Posted (Estimate)

June 27, 2006

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

July 24, 2015

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 22, 2015

Last Verified

July 1, 2015

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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