HIV/AIDS peer counselors' perspectives on intervention delivery formats

This research sought to elicit HIV/AIDS peer counselors' perspectives about delivery formats for a counseling intervention. Peer counselors identified personal contact as the major advantage of the face-to-face format. Personal contact afforded counselors better opportunities to understand and assess clients' physical, emotional, and environmental status and allowed them to connect with peers in more concrete and personal ways. Being physically present was also a very direct and effective way to role model for other HIV-positive women. Peer counselors identified a number of inherent barriers and challenges to telephone interventions but also recognized potential logistic and personal advantages. Despite the overwhelming preference for the face-to-face intervention format, counselors acknowledged the potential for conducting successful peer counseling over the telephone. A significant finding was that the value and meaning of HIV/AIDS peer counselors' work transcended the limitations of either delivery format.