# HIV in Injury: eValuation of Self-Testing in African Emergency Care for the Injured (HIV AECI)

> **NIH NIH K23** · RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL · 2021 · $196,378

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
HIV and injury are substantial public health problems, which disproportionately occur in low-and middle-income
countries (LMICs); with the majority of morbidity and mortality levied in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), in countries
such as Kenya. Although HIV and injury are immense problems, there is a paucity of study of their intersection.
Additionally, those most likely to need emergent injury care are young adults and males, key groups for HIV
services that have not been adequately engaged in HIV programs in SSA. This epidemiologic concordance of
injury in neglected HIV groups represents an opportunity to increase testing during the provision of commonly
sought emergency care; a known period for personal health growth in young adults. However, as facility based
opt-out HIV testing has been challenging in SSA, and Kenya specifically, novel approaches to improve testing
among populations with unique needs are required. HIV self-testing (HIVST) is an innovative strategy, which is
endorsed by the Kenyan Ministry of Health as a method to increase HIV care among high-risk groups, such as
young adults and males, but has never been leveraged in SSA emergency care to enhance HIV testing.
 This research aims to address knowledge gaps in the study of HIV and emergency injury care in
Kenya. The proposed work will generate robust quantitative and qualitative data on characteristics of
emergency department (ED) HIV care as well as barriers and opportunities to care, and the use of HIVST to
augment testing in the difficult to access young adult and male populations seeking treatments. Subsequently,
implementation science using a hybrid implementation-effectiveness design, which has not been employed
prior in SSA acute care research, will be used to efficiently evaluate the innovative delivery of ED based HIVST
among patients and providers. These studies will provide crucial foundational data for future large-scale multi-
site implementation trials which will inform global policy on the interface of HIV and emergency care in SSA as
well as the use HIVST to enhance care delivery in previously missed LMIC populations (i.e. young males).
 My long-term career goal is to become a highly trained clinician scientist with expertise in implementation
research and the study of the intersection of HIV and emergency care in LMICs. With the attainment of training
and mentorship through this K23 award, in conjunction with my prior HIV and emergency care research
experiences; I will be able to succeed in that trajectory. My career development aims for this proposal are to
gain in-depth training in implementation science and mixed methods research while generating innovative data
at the intersection of HIV, emergency care and ED-HIVST. Activities from this proposal will facilitate my
transition to being an independent investigator able to design and lead future research studies that will
evaluate the impacts of HIVST and additional ED interventions on testing and li...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10122893
- **Project number:** 5K23AI145411-02
- **Recipient organization:** RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Adam Russell Aluisio
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $196,378
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-03-06 → 2025-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10122893

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10122893, HIV in Injury: eValuation of Self-Testing in African Emergency Care for the Injured (HIV AECI) (5K23AI145411-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10122893. Licensed CC0.

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