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Virology Research Journal | Volume 2
May 18-19, 2018 | Montreal, Canada
2
nd
World Conference on
STDs, STIs & HIV/AIDS
A
ccording to The Joint United Nations Programme on
HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization
(WHO), approximately 33.4 million individuals throughout the
world have been affected by HIV/AIDS in the last 30 years or
so. The medication, Truvada, otherwise known as PrEP, has
been introduced to serve as a harm reduction technique to
combat the spread of HIV infection. PrEP is an antiretroviral
drug that lowers the risk of HIV exposure. This is a qualitative
study examining the sexual behaviors of gay and bisexual men
prescribed PrEP as a preventive method for the transmission of
HIV. The study was examined by 30 semi-structured in-depth
interviews of people who had been prescribed PrEP for at least
30 days in three cities: Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and New York
City. The results indicate that contextual factors shaped the
sexual behaviors of participants on PrEP, leading them to lower
risk at times and elevate it at others. PrEP caused individuals to
experience changes within their communication patterns with
their medical providers and their sexual partners. The results
shed light on the way people on PrEP engage in sexual and
health-seeking behaviors and help to develop a blueprint for
the way service providers engage with this community.
Speaker Biography
Michael Kaltenbach is an Adjunct Lecturer at Smith College School of Social Work,
teaching a course in clinical practice. His doctoral dissertation research interest focused
on how sexual behaviors have changed due to the usage of PrEP, as a HIV preventive
method. His research data as interpreted through the theoretical/ conceptual
perspectives of cognitive-behavioral theory and relational-cultural therapy. He is a
Licensed clinical social worker in California, New York, and Pennsylvania, and has many
years of experience providing psychotherapy, case management, and other social
services in a variety of settings: hospitals, HIV outpatient clinics, schools, foster care
agencies, senior residential facilities, group homes, outpatient community counseling
centers, etc. He has experience providing clinical supervision as well as field instruction
to MSW level social workers and interns from USC and UCLA. He formerly served
as a co-facilitator for the LA County HIV mental health task force, and has provided
lectures on various mental health topics. Previously, he was a Teacher’s Assistant (T.A.)
for a professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice’s
MSW level course on post-colonial social work practice: International Social Welfare
in Kolkata, India. He enjoys traveling and learning about various cultures. After he
obtained his Bachelor’s degree he served as an US peace corps volunteer in Senegal,
West Africa.
e:
mkalt@upenn.eduMichael Kaltenbach
University of Pennsylvania, USA
Changes in sexual behaviors due to the utilization of PrEP as a preventive method for
the transmission of HIV