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• Disclosing HIV-serodiscordance: a qualitative study of social dynamics (SRC FUNDED)

• ACB Service Provider Perceptions and Understanding of Biomedical Approaches to HIV Prevention (SRC FUNDED)

• HIV, Disability and Rehabilitation: An analysis of Research and Shared Innovation between Canada and Sub-Saharan Africa (SRC FUNDED)

• Making research accessible and stimulating critical reflection through video: engaging heterosexual African, Caribbean and Black men in community responses to HIV in Ontario (SRC FUNDED)

• What is the significance of immigration status and racialization in relation to the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure in Canada? (SRC FUNDED)

• Experiences of Trauma and the Initiation of Injecting Drug Use in Ottawa; Community-Based Research Applications of the Vidaview Life Story Board Interview Tool (SRC FUNDED)

• Social and ethical challenges to HIV and tuberculosis health care: expanding the discourse on integration via roundtable discussion at the 6th South African AIDS Conference (External Grant)

• Sharing the Lay of the Land: Developing an APHA Leadership Intervention Initiative(SLL:DALII) (SRC Funded)

• Migration on and off reserve: a social driver of risk/resiliency for HIV and HCV, or a determinant of health among Mi’kmaq people in New Brunswick? (SRC Funded)

• CBR and Ethics of Research – Creating Community Products to Promote Ethical Research Practices with People who Use Illicit Drugs (PWUIDs) (SRC Funded)

• Harm Reduction or Risk Production?: Exploring “Red Zones” in Ottawa’s Byward Market (SRC Funded)

• Positive Sex:  An Innovative Approach to Disclosure in Practice and in Consequence (SRC Funded)

• A National Research Needs and Assets Assessment for HIV Prevention among Gay and other Men who
  Have Sex with Men in Canada (SRC Funded)

• Pilot-testing a group-level intervention to reduce risk for sexual transmission of HIV/STIs among lesbian, bisexual and queer women and other women who have sex with women in Calgary and Toronto (SRC Funded)

• Community Engagement and Ownership in Establishing the Ottawa Cohort Study (SRC Funded)

• Determining the components of a trauma-informed intervention to improve the mental well-being of IRN PHAs (SRC Funded)

• Phase 1: Systematic Review to Support Development of an Intervention to reduce stigma experienced by HIV-Positive Diasporic Black, African, Caribbean and Canadian Women in Canada (SRC Funded)

• Development of a study to examine patterns of HIV infection among persons in Ontario from sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean following their arrival in Canada (SRC Funded)

• Understanding the dynamics of HIV serodiscordant relationships in the Canadian social-structural context: Protocol development phase (SRC Funded)

• HIV Prevention and the Criminal Law: An International Research Workshop on the Public Health Impact of Criminalizing HIV Exposure/Transmission The Workshop (SRC Funded)

• Promising HIV Prevention Programs and Interventions for Rural and Remote Regions in Canada:  Services Scoping (SRC Funded)

• Interdisciplinary HIV Pregnancy Research Group: Care and Research to Optimize HIV-positive Women's Health during Preconception, Pregnancy and Motherhood (External Grant)

• New Directions for Critical Perspectives on HIV (SRC Funded)

• iSpeak: Exploring the HIV-related perspectives, needs and challenges of African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) heterosexual men in Ontario (SRC Funded)

• Public Attitudes, Knowledge and Perception of HIV and AIDS in Canada: A Population Study (External Grant)

• Decolonizing, Indigenous and “Southern” Methodologies:   A Scoping Review to Develop Ways of Working Together (SRC Funded)

• Engaging the 21st Century Moccasin Telegraph: Using cyberspace to CAAN's advantage (External Grant)

• Rhetoric or Reality? Biomedical Prevention Tools as a Catalyst for Women’s Sexual Empowerment (SRC Funded)

• A consultation with ACB religious leaders in the GTA: toward developing and testing an intervention to reduce stigma among faith communities (SRC Funded)

Experiences of Trauma and the Initiation of Injecting Drug Use in Ottawa; Community-Based Research Applications of the Vidaview Life Story Board Interview Tool (SRC FUNDED)

• Read Abstract

Funding Program: SRC Funded

Research Team: Mark Tyndall, Catherine Worthington, Rob Chase, Louise Balfour, Lisa Lazarus and Ashley Shaw

 

Abstract

To better understand and address the high rates of HIV infection among people who use injection drugs (PWUID) in Ottawa, this study seeks to develop and pilot-test a novel research methodology for investigating the social determinants and root causes of injection drug use initiation among PWUID in the capital. Building on the success of the PROUD (Participatory Research in Ottawa; Understanding Drugs) Cohort Study in developing capacity, ownership and meaningful participation of PWUID in community-based research, the PROUD Community Advisory Committee (CAC) will lead the development and implementation of a new qualitative research project that seeks to investigate the relationships between experiences of trauma and initiation of injection drug use in their community. As a next step in their community-based research activities, the CAC identified experiences of trauma, mental health and stigma within health and social services as key issues in their community to explore in more depth. To overcome some of the challenges of traditional talk-based qualitative interviews, including barriers of power, trust and comfort when talking about difficult topics and experiences, this project will adapt and pilot test a new visual narrative interview tool: the Vidaview Life Story Board (LSB). The Vidaview LSB is an innovative visual interview tool with a play board, cards and notation system that facilitates the co-construction of a visual lifescape that represents the personal, relational and temporal aspects of a person`s lived experience. The application of this novel interview tool within a community-based research project constitutes a new social science research methodology for investigating themes of risk, resilience and vulnerability among communities affected by HIV. A comprehensive process evaluation will be conducted concurrently with the primary research to evaluate the utility of the LSB tool for improving data quality, and to assess the experiences of both interviewers and participants in the CBPR process. This evaluation will support further development of this novel visual interview methodology, as well as contribute to the advancement of community-based research methods among people who use drugs. The primary aim of this research is to develop and pilot test a new qualitative research methodology while enhancing our understanding of the relationship between experiences of trauma and initiation of injection drug use among people who use drugs in Ottawa. This new knowledge will empower the CAC to advocate for improved services and develop anti-stigma messaging that responds to the complex realities of trauma and drug use faced by their community.

Program: Research