Combining Social Network Strategies and Routine Substance Use Screening

Combining Social Network Strategies and Routine Substance Use Screening

This study aims to improve health care for people who may have HIV or substance use disorders by bringing two services to a large community health center in Chicago. First, the clinic will begin offering routine screening for substance use to all patients. Second, the study will offer a social network-based program that helps people identify friends or partners who may need support and link them to care. The goal is to help more people learn their HIV status, reduce HIV levels in the community, and connect people with substance use treatment when needed. The study will also look at how well these services can be added into everyday clinic practice and what is needed to keep them going over time.

This project will take place in a network of federally qualified health centers that serves communities in Chicago that experience some of the highest rates of new HIV infections. The study has two main parts: Routine Substance Use Screening and a Social Network Intervention (SNI).

Routine screening at the clinics will introduce a consistent, standardized way to ask patients about substance use during regular visits. Patients who screen positive will be offered help, referrals, and follow-up services.

The social network intervention asks patients to think about people in their social networks (such as partners, friends, or peers) who may have untreated HIV, may have fallen out of care, or may have substance use concerns. Participants will receive support and tools to help connect people in their network to HIV testing, care, and treatment or substance use services at these clinics.

Together, these activities aim to:

• Identify people who have HIV but are not in care
• Reduce HIV viral load levels in the community
• Identify people with substance use disorders and link them to treatment
• Improve access to supportive services in the community

The study will also examine how easy or hard it is for clinics to use these two strategies in everyday practice. Researchers will gather feedback from clinic staff and patients to understand what helps or gets in the way of using these services in the long term. The goal is to create a package of tools and processes that other clinics can adopt in the future.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Assigned male sex at birth
• Has sex with men
• Speaks English or Spanish

Exclusion Criteria:

• Institutionalized individuals
• Women
• Non-Hispanic whites