# Impact of a novel HIV peer navigationand overdose prevention intervention on engagement in the HIV prevention and treatment cascade.

> **NIH NIH R01** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $897,928

## Abstract

Project Summary
People who inject drugs (PWID) are at exceedingly high risk of HIV compared to the general population, yet
pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) programs that target them in the U.S. are scarce and accordingly PrEP
uptake in this population remains low. In recent years, substance use services have been scaled up to address
overdose among PWID, however, they remain an underutilized entry point into PrEP. Pivotal gains made in
reducing HIV could be rapidly eroded by the expanding population of PWID attributed to the ongoing opioid
epidemic, new HIV outbreaks among new injectors, and the emergent COVID-19 pandemic, which has
disrupted key HIV prevention services including syringe services programs, treatment and condom distribution.
The overarching aim of the RADAR (Rapid Alerts through Drug Analysis and Response) study is to design,
implement and evaluate a mobile health van that provides on-site PrEP, peer navigation and co-located drug
checking services (DCS). This study will expand the reach of PrEP services by offering a novel intervention
designed to increase PrEP awareness and engagement. DCS enable PWID to understand the precise
chemical contents of their drugs to inform safer drug practices and are critical in places where illicit fentanyl
drives overdose mortality. The integration of peer navigation will help attend to the multiple, pressing needs of
PWID and subsequently enhance their engagement in the PrEP continuum. Our specific aims are: (1) to
develop a community-level, mobile, integrated PrEP intervention aimed to increase PWID engagement in the
PrEP care continuum; (2) to implement the intervention through a stepped wedge cluster randomized trial and
evaluate its impact on being on PrEP or having seen a PrEP provider in the last six months among PWID
(N=600) over the course of 18 months; (2a) to measure the intervention’s impact on HIV risk behaviors (e.g.,
syringe sharing, condomless sex); and (3) to determine the incremental cost-effectiveness of the intervention in
terms of HIV cases averted among PWID (N=600) over the course of 18 months. The intervention (on-site
PrEP, peer navigation, SMS reminders, DCS and associated risk reduction counseling, standard-of-care
services) will be compared to the standard-of-care only (HIV testing, PrEP referrals, fentanyl test strips,
naloxone) condition. The proposal is directly responsive to PAR-18-915’s aim to leverage implementation
science to improve each step of the Seek, Test, Treat, and Retain (STTR) continuum for PWUD as well
broader NIH priorities to reduce HIV incidence and develop, test, and implement strategies to improve HIV
testing and entry into prevention and care. The study is innovative as it attends to multiple comorbidities, it is
inclusive of the expertise of PWID in all components of the study and builds on our experience in delivering
outreach services during COVID-19.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10475668
- **Project number:** 5R01DA053184-02
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Susan G. Sherman
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $897,928
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-01 → 2026-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10475668

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10475668, Impact of a novel HIV peer navigationand overdose prevention intervention on engagement in the HIV prevention and treatment cascade. (5R01DA053184-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10475668. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*