Knowledge Hub

This study consisted of HIV monitoring, surveillance and knowledge mobilization (KMb) among African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) people in Ontario. It was a two-year project funded by Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) and by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) to measure HIV prevalence, and to facilitate an improved understanding of associated behaviours, knowledge, community/structural factors, healthcare access and utilization among ACB people in Ontario.

The A/C Study was developed by a team of mostly ACB researchers and service providers in Toronto and Ottawa. It was a community-based research project, and people from ACB communities played leading roles in all aspects of the project.

Phase 1 collected data from 1,380 individuals who represented a broad cross-section of ACB communities. Data collection in this phase included a survey, a collection of a blood sample that was used to screen for HIV, linkage to health administrative data, and a point-of-care HIV test for participants who wanted to know their HIV status.

Project Team: Principal investigators: Dr. Josephine Etowa, Dr. Winston Husbands, Dr. Lawrence Mbuagbaw, Dr. LaRon Nelson, Suzanne Obiorah, Wangari Tharao, Dr. Shamara Baidoobonso

Funding Agency : PHAC and OHTN

Phase 2 consisted of a two-day online workshop where information about the A/C Study was shared with the public for discussion. During the event, we held 12 focus group discussions to gather information regarding the public’s reaction to the study findings.

Learn More:

Explore fact sheets, community reports, presentations, articles and other resources on the A/C Study website.

Watch Dr. Etowa’s presentation on community perspectives on addressing and responding to HIB/AIDS among ACB people in Ontario in this video (9 minutes):

https://youtu.be/j9L5Ol0N8S8?si=XiigOHS5xc8k5ilc

Project team information currently unavailable.

Dr. Lawrence Mbuagbaw, Dr. LaRon Nelson, Dr. Josephine Etowa, Dr. Winston Husbands, Suzanne Obiorah, Wangari Tharao, Dr. Shamara Baidoobonso

2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

Completed