Table 1: NHBS HET3 Participant Characteristics Using GIS to Visualize Data from the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance (NHBS) in New Orleans, 2013 Meagan Zarwell, PhD Candidate and Laura Cahill, MPH, MA Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Public Health publichealth.lsuhsc.edu Background Discussion Map 1: Using RDS Methods to Recruit Participants from High Risk Areas NHBS seeks to monitor trends in risk behaviors and HIV testing within populations at elevated risk for HIV infection including men who have sex with men, injection drug users, and heterosexuals (HET). The HET3 cycle recruited heterosexuals living in census tracts with high rates of poverty in New Orleans. Respondents who self-reported being HIV+, men who have sex with men, or injection drug users were excluded from this study in order to examine the specific hard-to-reach heterosexual population living in poverty. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the goals and methods of NHBS using GIS in order to: assess the effectiveness of sampling strategy to recruit the NHBS target population display substance use of participants visualize HIV testing and home-based testing preferences Alcohol use, non-injection drug use, HIV testing experiences and testing preferences are all important factors for HIV transmission and prevention. As such, it is important to monitor these behaviors and preferences within populations at higher risk for HIV infection including heterosexuals living in poverty. Map 1 indicates that the majority of NHBS participants were recruited successfully from the target population. In addition, the geographic spread of participants around the central location of the NO/AIDS office (where the survey was administered) indicates that participants successfully recruited eligible peers from various parts of the city as required by RDS methodology. Map 2 is useful for monitoring substance use behaviors among participants from specific neighborhoods: alcohol use was more widespread among participants than non-injection drug use. This may be an important finding for future programs aimed at reducing substance use within this population. Lastly, efforts geared toward HIV testing have historically been provided in clinical settings by health care providers. Recently, the FDA approved home-based rapid testing that can be self-administered. Map 3 shows which neighborhoods have more participants who have never been tested for HIV and their preferences for home-based testing. This map demonstrates both areas that would benefit from novel testing interventions and those in which there may be high acceptance of no cost home-based testing. Map 2: Substance Use in the Past 12 months Methods Using respondent driven sampling methods (RDS), participants were recruited who were at least 18 years of age, residents of Orleans parish, able to take the survey in English and who had sex in the past 12 months. Respondents were given a survey lasting approximately 45 minutes. The following questions were included in the analysis: Census tract Poverty status (calculated by household income and # of persons living in household) Any alcohol consumption in past 12 months Any non-injection drugs in the past 12 months Ever took an HIV test Willingness to take self-administered home-based test for HIV: “If a research study or the health department mailed you a free home-based HIV test that you could read the result of yourself, would you take it?” Implications Mapping NHBS HET3 data is useful to both evaluate the effectiveness of the sampling method employed and to illuminate potential neighborhoods where targeted HIV interventions such as mailed home-based testing services or substance use programs may be appropriate. Results Map 3: Testing Density and Home-Based Testing Preferences Table 1 demonstrates the characteristics of study participants. The majority of the sample were African American (97%) and male (60%). While the ages of participants varied, most had received an HIV test in their life (84%) and consumed alcohol in the past 12 months (74%). Almost half (47%) of those surveyed reported using non-injection drugs in past 12 months. In addition, 81% of participants lived below the poverty line. The socio-demographic characteristics of the sample demonstrate that NHBS effectively reached the target population of residents from Orleans parish. Table 1: NHBS HET3 Participant Characteristics   (N =384) % Race African American 372 96.9 Other 7 1.8 White Age 18-29 88 23.7 30-39 92 24.8 40-49 51+ 99 26.7 Gender Male 230 59.6 Female 156 40.4 Ever tested Yes 325 84.4 No 60 15.6 Poverty 313 81.1 73 18.9 Alcohol Use Any 285 73.8 None 101 26.2 Non-Injection Drug Use 182 47.1 204 52.9 Acknowledgement Thanks to all study participants, NO/AIDS Task Force and the Nola Fresh Project Staff, the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Public Health, and the Louisiana Office of Public Health HIV/AIDS Division. This work was in part supported by a Cooperative Agreement # U1BPS003252 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the CDC.