Implementation and evaluation of an HIV/STD intervention in Peru

Area of Science:

• Community Health
• Public Health Interventions
• Process Evaluation

Background:

• Community-based interventions require effective strategies for message dissemination.
• Engaging local opinion leaders can facilitate peer-to-peer health communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present lessons learned from a process evaluation of a community intervention in Lima, Peru.
• To assess the feasibility, acceptability, and success factors of training community popular opinion leaders (CPOLs).

Main Methods:

• A 1-year process evaluation of a 2-year community intervention.
• Data collection included observations, interviews, message analysis, facilitator perceptions, and CPOL surveys.

Main Results:

• Community popular opinion leaders (CPOLs) demonstrated motivation in disseminating prevention messages.
• CPOLs reported positive effects on their own risk behaviors and community well-being.
• The process evaluation identified key elements for intervention success and replication.

Conclusions:

• Training and motivating community popular opinion leaders (CPOLs) is a feasible and acceptable intervention strategy.
• CPOLs can effectively disseminate health messages and influence peer behaviors.
• Process evaluation is crucial for refining and replicating community health interventions.