# Unveiling Pathways to Ending HIV Among African American Women: Leveraging Social Networks to Enhance HIV Testing and Treatment Engagement Among  Migrants

> **NIH NIH K01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2024 · $183,331

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Global health agencies have identified migration as a common and key determinant of health and well-being,
with women disproportionately vulnerable to higher HIV risk and poorer health service access and utilization.
African American women are among the key populations hardest hit by the HIV epidemic in the U.S. and have
sustained markedly higher participation in migration compared to White populations for two decades due to
gendered and racialized trends. Data illuminating complex HIV service linkage barriers among migrant women
advocate for leveraging social networks as innovative avenues for HIV testing and treatment interventions.
This approach is particularly relevant given migrants' reliance on networks to relocate and the robust influence
of networks on social support and health behaviors. While network-based strategies have proven effective in
promoting HIV service linkage among diverse groups, they are currently untested, untailored, and unsuitable to
meet the culturally specific needs of African American migrant women. This K01 Mentored Research Scientist
Development application is among the first to examine the influence of migration-driven social support network
dynamics and characteristics on HIV testing and treatment (Aim 1) among African American women migrants,
aiming to develop (Aim 2), implement, and evaluate (Aim 3) a social network-based HIV service intervention.
The study site, Atlanta, GA, is a southern urban center with a disproportionately high burden of HIV incidence
and prevalence among African American women. It is also the most populous destination city for over 2 million
African American New Great Migration migrants. African American women, who bear the highest burden of
HIV risk, prevention, and treatment inequities among all other groups of women in the U.S., constitute the
majority of New Great Migration migrants. This K01 will provide necessary training in (1) advanced longitudinal
social network data analyses, (2) mixed methods, (3) social network intervention design, and (4) testing and
evaluation. These skills are crucial for achieving my long-term goal of becoming an independent scientific
pioneer who uses interdisciplinary and community-led methods to develop high-impact network-based health
interventions for African American women. The career development and training essential to launching my
independence will be led by a multidisciplinary and internationally recognized team of experts in mixed-
methods HIV research and interventions with migrants (Primary mentor: Dr. Carol Camlin), longitudinal
dynamic social network research methods and analysis in public health research (Co-mentor: Dr. Jim Moody),
advanced statistical analyses using multilevel modeling (Co-mentor: Dr. Tor Neilands), and HIV intervention
design, implementation, and evaluation (Co-mentor: Dr. Jae Sevelius, Advisor: Dr. Sophia Hussen).

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11009406
- **Project number:** 1K01MH134744-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** Miranda Hill
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $183,331
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-08-27 → 2029-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11009406

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11009406, Unveiling Pathways to Ending HIV Among African American Women: Leveraging Social Networks to Enhance HIV Testing and Treatment Engagement Among  Migrants (1K01MH134744-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11009406. Licensed CC0.

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