# Integrated Navigation Services for Treatment Adherence, Counseling, and Research (INSTACARE).

> **NIH NIH R56** · UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $249,999

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The goal of this research is to determine whether a CHW intervention including a mobile telehealth (M-Health)
component can help achieve long term viral suppression among Black people with poorly controlled HIV.
The US Government’s Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) initiative identified Miami-Dade County as a major
epicenter of HIV. The County suffers from the Nation’s highest HIV incidence and excess AIDS-related mortality.
Despite the availability of effective treatment and prevention, HIV disparities persist among certain demographic
groups, especially Black communities. While Blacks comprise just 17% of the County’s population, they account
for 64% of all AIDS-related deaths. This highlights a critical need for locally-designed strategies to facilitate
improved access to HIV treatment and support for medication adherence.
For over thirty years the University of Miami’s Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) has been dedicated to
advancing HIV/AIDS research and partnering with the community to prevent, treat, and cure HIV/AIDS. This
includes 12 years of research and service initiatives involving community health worker (CHW) interventions
addressing disparities among Black people living with HIV (PLH). Our pilot work has already shown that Black
PLH randomized to receive CHW support for 12 months had significantly improved viral suppression compared
to those who received the usual standard of HIV care. More recently, our team has developed enhanced CHW
interventions that combine personalized, home-based CHW support with mobile telehealth strategies to improve
minority health outcomes. Building upon this research, we propose the Integrated Navigation Services for
Treatment Adherence, Counseling, and Research (INSTACARE) study, a comprehensive CHW intervention to
improve treatment adherence and viral suppression among Black PLH.
Leveraging our established CHW network, the proposed research will integrate CHWs into HIV clinical care
teams and examine the effects of a multi-level CHW and telehealth approach on viral suppression among Black
people with uncontrolled HIV (viral load > 200 copies/ml). This proposal also builds upon our prior studies as
well as our ongoing CHW programs providing street-based HIV outreach, education, and rapid screening in
Black communities plagued by the worst HIV outcomes. Three hundred Black PLH who have not achieved viral
suppression will be recruited from Miami’s public healthcare system. Participants will be randomized to a 12-
month CHW intervention enhanced with mobile telehealth support versus usual HIV care. Pre and post
assessments will determine intervention effects on viral load, medication adherence, hospitalizations, and self-
efficacy in adhering to treatment and taking medications. The project will provide critically important research
findings addressing existing knowledge gaps on the effectiveness of CHWs at improving HIV outcomes among
Black PLH.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10266233
- **Project number:** 1R56NR019755-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Sonjia Kenya
- **Activity code:** R56 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $249,999
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-24 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10266233

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10266233, Integrated Navigation Services for Treatment Adherence, Counseling, and Research (INSTACARE). (1R56NR019755-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10266233. Licensed CC0.

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