Anu Karunanithy

This session explored how the generation of scientific knowledge in the HIV field may be undermined by researchers' biases and insufficient understanding of how to effectively engage people who inject drugs (PWID) and people who use drugs as study participants.

This session was moderated by Russell Campbell (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, USA), and the panelists were Wafaa El Sadr (ICAP at Columbia University, USA), Alex Dubov (Loma Linda University School of Medicine, USA), and Steve Shoptaw (University of California, Los Angeles, USA). El-Sadr pointed out that it is important to have the engagement of populations along the research portfolio and the integrated strategy approach is necessary to demonstrate optimal effectiveness in specific populations. Dubov presented on the implicit association test tool to measure health care providers' (HCP) implicit bias towards patients who are PWID. The study conducted using the tool shows that one in every 3 HCP exhibited explicit bias and that 58% of HCP with no explicit bias exhibited implicit bias. Shoptaw presented on a study that addressed prevention of HIV outbreaks among PWID in the United States. During his presentation, he mentioned that people under the influence of substances are more likely to engage in sexual behaviors that put them at risk of HIV and that clinicians who treat HIV have less knowledge on how to treat people with addiction.

The session highlighted that the issue of addictophobia is real and that it is necessary to involve PWID in the clinical trials of combination of HIV prevention and harm reduction. In order to bridge the gap on implicit bias and addictophobia, sensitization training for research staff is critically important as well.