Leveraging Infant Visit PrEP INtegration & tasK Shifting to Improve Post-partum HIV Prevention in Malawi

Overview

The goal of the Leveraging Infant Visit PrEP INtegration \& tasK Shifting to Improve Postpartum HIV Prevention in Malawi (LINK) study is to evaluate both the effectiveness of a postpartum prevention package ("LINK model") among post-partum women and its implementation into existing clinical care models in Lilongwe, Malawi. The main question the study seeks to answer is: Do women at clinics implementing the LINK model have improved Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) persistence compared to women at clinics receiving the standard of care? Researchers will compare the LINK model to standard of care by randomizing twelve sites to either the LINK model or the standard of care. Then researchers will review existing medical record and health surveillance data, and qualitative and quantitative data collected from intervention and control sites.

Study Design Overview: The LINK study is an effectiveness-implementation type I hybrid cluster randomized trial. Prospective data collection and existing medical record and health surveillance data will be used to evaluate the effectiveness and implementation of the LINK model. The LINK model is a clinical intervention aiming to improve PrEP persistence among postpartum women. Outcomes from this trial will be used to assess its potential for implementation outside of the trial setting. The study will take place in Lilongwe district in Malawi, a priority district for HIV prevention services given high HIV incidence. Twelve sites in Lilongwe will be randomized 1:1 to the LINK model or the standard of care. The LINK model includes: 1. Linking postpartum HIV testing and PrEP services to early infant vaccination 2. Screening for HIV risk among those who test negative for HIV at the early infant vaccination visit 3. Male partner engagement to support status awareness within couples and PrEP persistence 4. Community facility-linkage (CFL) peer mom for ongoing support of breastfeeding moms using PrEP, and follow-up of breastfeeding women who disengage from PrEP care Components #1-3 are directly integrated into the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) infant vaccination visit and will be carried out by a mix of existing staff and study-hired HIV diagnostic assistants (HDA). HDAs are a lower healthcare worker cadre that Malawi has successfully deployed to expand HIV testing services. Component #4 will take place outside of the infant immunization clinic, integrated into existing PrEP clinics and clinic flow at each site. Component #4 will shift the tasks of engaging women, exploring strategies to facilitate ongoing PrEP care attendance, and tracing persons who disengage from care from the the PrEP prescriber (typically a nurse) to the CFL "PrEP peer" mother. The study anticipates supporting placement of one PrEP-trained HDA and at least one CFL "PrEP peer" at each intervention site. All PrEP services, including clinical evaluation and medication refill or administration, will be provided by Malawi Ministry of Health (MoH) and/or local implementing partners tasked with PrEP delivery. Data collection methods will include structured observation, medical record review, surveys, and in-depth interviews (IDI) with patients in each of the twelve clinics. The primary outcome, PrEP persistence, will be assessed by PrEP medical record review of patients at intervention and control clinics. Additionally, there will be study-specific data collection tools including surveys, IDI, and dried blood spots (DBS) administered to participants consented and enrolled into the study at intervention and control clinics. Participants will not be followed longitudinally. Study data assistants will administer surveys at each participating site for women receiving services related to infant vaccines and PrEP care. These surveys will collect demographic information, HIV risks, and PrEP utilization (if applicable). Researchers will collect DBS from a subset of women who initiated PrEP to measure oral PrEP adherence. A subset of women in intervention clinics, including those receiving services at the PrEP and/or EPI clinics, as well as clinical providers, implementing partners, and members of the Malawi Ministry of Health will be asked to participate in an IDI focused on acceptability and feasibility of the intervention. For women, interviews will focus on experiences with each component of the intervention and partner support for HIV testing and PrEP usage during the postpartum period. Non-patient stakeholders' interviews will focus on context and feasibility of implementation, scale, and sustainability of the LINK model.