The California Hub for HIV/STI/SUD Prevention and Research with Reentry Populations

(California MEPS Hub)

Improving service linkage for individuals at risk of HIV in the period following incarceration

When people return to the community from prison or jail, they face heightened risks of acquiring HIV or other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and of experiencing drug overdoses. These risks are especially pronounced among certain groups, like Black and Latinx people, sexual and gender minority people, and people with substance use disorders (SUDs) who inject drugs. We, the California Hub for HIV/STI/SUD Prevention and Reentry Research with Reentry Populations, do not accept these risks, and are committed to helping make the transition from incarceration to the community safer.

Realizing this goal requires effective strategies to help reentry populations to prioritize their health and find essential services like housing, substance use disorder treatment, HIV/STI testing, HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and other health services. 

The Hub is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (award #1R61DA060626-01) and is part of the Collaborative Network to End the HIV Epidemic and Address Addiction in the Criminal Justice System (CONNECT). Over the next 5 years, we will study the implementation of Mobile Enhanced Prevention Support (MEPS), a 6-month intervention designed to promote engagement in services to prevent HIV, STIs, and HCV following reentry and to encourage engagement in services for substance use disorder treatment and harm reduction.

Hub
Goals

Our Hub aims to address the following objectives:

  • The MEPS elements include a peer mentor, a smartphone app (GeoPass), and small cash incentives for accessing medical and non-medical services. We aim to determine which MEPS components are the most effective for different populations.

  • We will identify and describe elements in new settings that facilitate or hinder the intervention’s success.

  • We will identify the strategies most likely to be adopted, implemented, and maintained by organizations that serve reentry populations, tailoring these as needed to specific organization types.

  • We will train junior investigators and field pilot studies to advance reentry-focused prevention efforts.

MEPS Intervention Testimonials

  • “I think in the beginning, you think of the incentives, especially as somebody who didn't have a reliable income at that moment too. It was more or less like, "Okay, this is cool, I'm getting money for this, but at the same point, I'm handling responsibilities that I should be handling already." As it went on, and as I reached my goals in regards to gaining employment and having that source of income, with keeping on track of my health, the incentives went out the window. It was just more or less to make sure that I managed my health, in a good way. You know?”

  • “I think the most helpful thing [about a peer] is that I don't have to do this all of my own, you know I have someone you know that can help me, get through this. And one day at a time, baby steps and no, it's not gonna happen overnight. So it's nice to know that I have someone in it for the long haul with me, and is committed and is patient. And that's the thing I like most about him is that he's patient.”

  • “It's been really nice to have a peer and a mentor. I think anything like that is just good for setting your goals. It's good for your mental health. It's good knowing that you have a support system. I could always call him, and you know, if I'm going through a rough time, you know, it's always good to talk to someone been through the same things and been maybe worse things that I've been through.”

  • “Like without MEPS, I couldn’t afford to pay for shoes. I’m going from just not even making it to be able just to make it.”

  • “I'll go back and say the goal setting that's a fantastic thing. I think that's probably a huge thing that's missing from a lot of people, especially people in my circumstance or people in this program, or people on parole. I don't think that they ever had any kind of idea of what goals setting looking at like, or sounded like, or how easy it is to get going.”

  • “[My peer] picked up the phone every time I called. If I missed an appointment, he called to remind me. It wasn't too pushy. It wasn't too—it wasn't uncomfortable, and it was very direct, forward, and straight to the point, and it helped, and I like that.”

  • “[GeoPass] manages my health appointments. But at the same point, it gives me this incentive to stay on top of it. Then it came to a point where it's like, it wasn't just incentives, this was like daily responsibilities that I would have to do, even without the incentives. It just kind of taught me that—just to be mindful of myself, if that makes sense.”

  • “Yeah, the app's f**** good. That was good that y'all did the app. They need the app. For the study to be any good, you need the app because the app makes you sense that you have accomplishments, makes you track what you actually did. There's stuff I need to go fill out on the app that I haven't filled out for last week, but it just lets you know that hey, you're actually doing something.”

  • “The incentives played a huge part in it too, as well, but it wasn't just the incentives at that it was just like, it helped me just become more mindful of just what did I need to do in regards to like HIV testing, getting on PrEP—all those benefits that came along with it of just like making sure I was on top of my health.”

  • “My favorite part of the app is after doing one of the goals, going on the app and getting credit for it. It incentivizes you, but after you do something, and then you get to go on the app and show that you did it, it's like somebody else knows what you did—that you did it.”

Meet our Team

Charles Vignola, M.P.A.

Study Coordinator, LARRP

Patrick A. Wilson, PhD

Co-Investigator, Clinical Supervisor, UCLA

Julyanna Mendez

Site Lead, LARRP

Katie Kramer, DSW, MPH, MSW

Co-Investigator, The Bridging Group

Laura Packel, MPH, PhD

Co-Investigator, U.C. Berkeley

Sandi McCoy, PhD MPH

Principal Investigator, U.C. Berkeley

Katrina Schrode, PhD

Data Manager, Charles R. Drew University

Charles L. Hilliard, PhD

Senior Clinical Supervisor, University of Southern California

Gabriel G. Edwards, MD, MPH

Study Director, UCLA

Melissa Rios, M.A.

Study Coordinator, UCLA

Darlene Castro, CPT1, CCMA

Research Associate, UCLA

Michael Murrley

Peer Specialist Advisor, First to Serve

William D. King, MD, JD, AAHIVS

Clinical Medicine Advisor, W. King Health Care Group

Nina T. Harawa, PhD, MPH

Principal Investigator, UCLA, Charles R. Drew University

Vasthy Amilibia

Research Associate, UCLA

Clara Voong

Graduate Student Researcher, U.C. Berkeley

Meet Our Board of Advisory Stakeholders

Rosie Trujillo

The Exception, San Bernardino, CA

John Wilson

Riverside City College, Riverside, CA

Rahkii Holman

Community Works West, Oakland, CA

Steven Hensley

Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, Oakland, CA

Ramon Ramos

The Exception, San Bernardino, CA

Michael Ortega

Kindful Restoration, Riverside, CA

Maria Rios

Community Works West, Oakland, CA

Kobe Moore

Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, Oakland, CA

Additional
Information 

Additional information about the California Hub for HIV and Substance Use Disorder/SUD Prevention Research with Reentry Populations and MEPS can be found in the following resources:

  • Relevant Publications 

  • News articles

  • The CONNECT Network

  • Study outreach materials

Strong and equitable  partnerships between academic institutions and community organizations forms the foundation of our Hub and the work we aim to accomplish. We’re excited to collaborate with others committed to improving reentry health and welcome new stakeholders interested in joining us in this mission.

The California Hub is supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) under Award Number R61DA060626. The content on this website is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.