Suubi+Adherence4Youth

Suubi+Adherence4Youth (2022-2027)

Suubi+Adherence4Youth: Optimizing the Suubi Intervention for Adherence to HIV Treatment in Uganda

Principal Investigators: Fred M. Ssewamala, PhD (New York University); John Sauceda, PhD (University of California San Francisco)

Funding Agency: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Project Team Members and Implementing Partners: Ozge Sensoy Bahar, PhD (New York University); Proscovia Nabunya, PhD; Derek Brown, PhD; Torsten Neilands, PhD (University of California San Francisco), Marya Gwadz, PhD; (New York University), Noeline Nakasujja, MBChB, PhD (Makerere University); Abel Mwebembezi, PhD (Reach the Youth Uganda)

The Suubi+Adherence4Youth study (also known as MOST) seeks to unpack the Suubi intervention (consisting of financial literacy training, incentivized matched youth savings accounts with income-generating activities, a manualized intervention for antiretroviral (ART) adherence and stigma reduction, and engagement with HIV treatment-experienced role models who share lived experiences with HIV), to identify the most impactful and sustainable components: economic vs. psychosocial components, for adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV) across the HIV care continuum.  We will use a factorial experiment to unpack and optimize the Suubi intervention to enhance scale up in health systems using the multi-phase optimization strategy (MOST), an engineering-inspired intervention framework. Learn more here.