| Issue/Objective |
The HIV epidemic landscape in Ontario has shifted over the past decade, with growing evidence that migration is reshaping patterns of new HIV diagnosis and linkage to care. Due to structural, sociocultural and adaptation challenges such as lack access to culturally responsive care and navigating settlement, racialized newcomers already living with HIV experience prolonged linkage to care, risking treatment interruption and viral rebound. Meanwhile, little is known about how they are linked to HIV care in Ontario. This paper seeks to map the pathway of HIV care linkage for racialized newcomers already living with HIV in Southeastern Ontario and identify the unique social and structural barriers they face in navigating care locally. |
| Methodology/Approach |
Informed by critical race theory and abolitionist feminism, this study conducts semi-structured interviews with racialized newcomers who were already living with HIV before migration. Participants are recruited through regional HIV/AIDS service organizations, immunology clinics and newcomer settlement service agencies. Interview data are analyzed using adductive thematic analysis to examine participants' experience of care linkage and care retention in Southeastern Ontario. |
| Results |
At the time of abstract submission, data collection is ongoing and findings are not available. Preliminary findings will be synthesized and presented at the conference. Literature review and pre-research community consultations have shed light on some critical insights that informed the research interests. Contrary to biomedical understanding of linkage to care as a single patient referral, community consultations pointed out that it is a multi-step process shaped by PLHIV's immigration pathways, social capitals, access to health coverage and local service availability. Existing literature also discussed how newcomers' linkage to care can be delayed when post-test counselling and HIV specialist referral procedures have been absent or weakly implemented by the Immigration Medical Examination physicians. Notably, refugee claimants can wait for 80 days to receive treatment, compared to 19 days among people who were newly diagnosed of HIV in Ontario. |
| Discussion/Conclusion |
This study seeks to inform how local health service systems can be strengthened to improve equitable care access for newcomers already living with HIV, contributing to Ontario's progress toward the 95-95-95 goal of ending the HIV epidemic. |
| Presenters and Affiliations |
Shuying Chen Queen's University |
