Virupax Ranebennur

FHI 360 | FHI · Strategic Information

Introduction: Vaccine hesitancy persists as a barrier to vaccine uptake among adults across geographies. We pilot-tested an incentivized peer referral intervention in Yopougon-Est, Côte d'Ivoire, to encourage adults who recently received COVID-19 vaccination to discuss their experiences and motivate family and friends to seek vaccination. Impleme...

In Mali, identification of new HIV cases remains a great challenge to achieving UNAIDS’ first 90 goal. To improve efficiency, the USAID- and PEPFAR-supported LINKAGES project developed an index testing strategy to identify people at high risk for HIV among female sex workers (FSWs) and their contacts. This approach contributes to improved HIV case-...

Recent studies of Indian men who have sex with men (MSM) have shown widespread use of social media for seeking sex partners. We piloted a peer mobilization approach to explore the feasibility of engaging previously unreached MSM online to link them to HIV testing services (HTS). MSM were encouraged to seek HTS through messages posted on a popular d...

To improve efficiency to achieve the first 90 of UNAIDS goals, the USAID and PEPFAR-supported LINKAGES program developed an HIV Risk Assessment Tool (HRAT) to identify people at high-risk for HIV. This approach contributes to improve HIV case finding and rapid ART initiation. WE conducted an analysis of program data to determine HRAT performance wh...

Background Since 2004, FHI has been implementing Aastha, a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation supported HIV/STI prevention project for 24 000 sex workers (SWs) in Mumbai and Thane. It provides STI services to approximately 11 000 SWs monthly. HIV counselling and testing services were strengthened from March 2009 and by October 2010, 13 669 individuals...