Through its ongoing collaborations with the Providence/Boston Center for AIDS Research (CFAR), Fenway Health, the University of Florida, and Florida International University, ARCH researchers have investigated the combined effects of alcohol and HIV on brain structure and function, on the effects of behavioral alcohol interventions among men with HIV who have sex with men, and on the effects of alcohol use on sexual decision making and behavior among men who have sex with men.

“Our strength in research on alcohol and HIV now features prominently in the Providence/Boston CFAR,” Kahler said, “establishing Brown as a national leader in research on this topic.” 

The new five-year NIAAA award will support studies focused on strategies to increase the reach of alcohol use interventions in HIV prevention and care. Two projects will examine technology-assisted interventions, including a web-based app to reduce alcohol use among gay and bisexual men completing home testing for HIV, and counseling via videoconferencing to address alcohol misuse in people receiving HIV care. A third project will examine the implementation of training for counselors to address alcohol misuse in HIV care settings in South Africa.

According to Kahler, the renewal of the ARCH is organized around the central theme that in order to achieve population impact, interventions addressing alcohol misuse in HIV prevention and care need to be evaluated with an emphasis on real-world effectiveness, scalability and sustainability, with the goal of implementing evidence-based practices into clinical health care settings.

“I am particularly excited about this next segment of funding,” Kahler said. “It demonstrates the evolution of the ARCH from documenting consequences of alcohol use on HIV outcomes, to implementing interventions in a diversity of settings that can make population impact and influence systems of HIV prevention and care.”

Other Brown University investigators at the center include Peter Monti (deputy director), Tyler Wray, Tao Liu, Caroline Kuo, Sara Becker, Mollie Monnig, Mark Celio, Stavroula Chrysanthopoulou and Rani Elwy.