Beyond Disease Intervention: Exploring an Expanded Role for Partner Services in the MATRix-NC Demonstration Project

Background Disease intervention specialists (DIS) provide partner services for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). We assessed an expansion of DIS services for clients with HIV and/or syphilis, and contacts within their social and sexual networks. Methods Black and Latinx cisgender men and transgender women who have sex with men diagnosed with HIV and/or syphilis in 4 urban North Carolina counties were referred to designated DIS, who were trained to recruit clients as "seeds" for chain-referral sampling of sociosexual network "peers." All received HIV/STI testing and care; referrals for preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and social, behavioral, and non-STI medical services were offered. Participants completed baseline, 1-month, and 3-month computerized surveys. Results Of 213 cases referred to DIS from May 2018 to February 2020, 42 seeds (25 with syphilis, 17 with HIV) and 50 peers participated. Median age was 27 years; 93% were Black and 86% were cisgender men. Most peers came from seeds' social networks: 66% were friends, 20% were relatives, and 38% were cisgender women. Incomes were low, 41% were uninsured, and 10% experienced recent homelessness. More seeds than peers had baseline PrEP awareness; attitudes were favorable, but utilization was poor. Thirty-seven participants were referred for PrEP 50 times; 17 (46%) accessed PrEP by month 3. Thirty-nine participants received 129 non-PrEP referrals, most commonly for housing assistance, primary care, Medicaid navigation, and food insecurity. Conclusions Chain-referral sampling from partner services clients allowed DIS to access persons with significant medical and social service needs, demonstrating that DIS can support marginalized communities beyond STI intervention.