Focus Group Guide Category 2

Form Approved

OMB No. 0920-New

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

“Community-based Organization Outcome Monitoring Projects for CBO HIV Prevention Services Clients”

Attachment 5h#

Category 2 Focus Group Questionnaire

Public reporting burden of this collection of information is estimated to average 90 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to CDC/ATSDR Reports Clearance Officer; 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS D-74, Atlanta, Georgia 30333; Attn: OMB-PRA (0920-New)

Interview Logistics
CBO name
Interview date
Facilitator name
Title of the facilitator (or person’s role/job at CBO)
Facilitator assistant name
Title of the assistant facilitator (or person’s role/job at CBO)
Time start/end	Start:	End:
Number of participants
Comments (e.g., document anything noteworthy that happened or was said before or after the focus group- or during focus group if not captured on recording)

Hello and welcome to our session. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us. My name is [insert name here] and assisting me is [insert name here]. Before we begin, please write your name on the name card in front of you.

The reason we are meeting with you today is to better understand your experiences with HIV prevention services. Specifically, we will be asking you to share your experiences with [CBO], HIV testing with [CBO] or any other agency, anti-HIV medicines, and other HIV prevention services you may be familiar with.

We are holding sessions like this in several different cities, between [MM/YYYY] and [MM/YYYY]. Everyone’s experiences and opinions are important. We encourage you to share your point of view even if it differs from what others have said. I will ask each question to the group and anyone can answer. We ask that only one person speak at a time and we want to hear from everyone. Please turn off your cell phones.

We expect this session to run about an hour to an hour and a half.

The information you share today will be kept private and will not include your names or any identifiable information.

Unless there are any objections, we would like to record this focus group. We’re recording because we don’t want to miss any of the valuable information you share. When the project is over, in [MM/YYYY], we will summarize what we learned from these discussions.

Are there any questions? If there are no questions, we can begin.

Part 1: Experiences at this agency

First, let’s talk about your experiences with [CBO].

Tell us a little bit about your involvement and experiences with [CBO].

What do you like about [CBO], compared to other places that offer similar programs in the area?

Part 2: Experiences with HIV testing

Now let’s talk about HIV testing.

Tell us about where you go to get tested for HIV?

Why do you pick these places over others?

What have your past HIV testing experiences been like?

Describe any problems that you had with getting tested for HIV?

Part 3: Experiences with nPEP

I will now ask you some questions about anti-HIV medicines, pills that can be taken to prevent HIV infection. First, we will talk about nPEP which refers to the medications you take after having sex or after injecting drugs to prevent you from getting HIV.

What do you know about nPEP?

Where did you learn about nPEP?

For those of you who have used nPEP, what was your experience like?

Describe any problems that you had with nPEP.

What are your concerns about taking nPEP in the future?

Part 4: Experiences with PrEP

Now we will talk about PrEP which refers to the medications you take regularly before having sex or injecting drugs to prevent you from getting HIV.

What do you know about PrEP?

Where did you learn about PrEP?

For those of you who have used PrEP, what was your experience like?

Describe any problems that you had with PrEP (this could be problems with the PrEP provider, side effects, sticking to the regimen, cost of the drug, etc)?

What are your concerns about taking PrEP in the future?

What is the hardest part about taking your PrEP medicines as prescribed over time?

What would help you to take your PrEP medicines as prescribed over time?

If you were on PrEP and stopped, would you describe your reasons for stopping?

Part 5: Experiences with Other HIV Prevention Services

Besides getting tested for HIV and taking anti-HIV medicines, their other services that you may be offered that are intended to keep you from getting HIV infection.

First, let’s talk about HIV-specific services such as one-on-one conversations with an outreach worker, counselor, or prevention program worker or an organized group session to discuss ways to prevent HIV infections?

What was your experience like with these services?

Describe any problems that you had with these services?

Now, let’s talk about other services that aren’t related to HIV but are frequently offered by organizations that provide HIV prevention services. These may include mental health and substance abuse services, screening and treatment for other STDs, employment and educational assistance. I’m going to pass around a complete of these type of services for you to refer to.

Referring to the list, what was your experience like with these services?

Describe any problems that you had with these services?

Part 6: Anything else?

Before we end this focus group, I want to make sure that you have the opportunity to share anything else about HIV prevention that you haven’t shared already.

Thank you for sharing your experiences.

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