Qualitative Contributions to Implementation Research on HIV Prevention and Treatment

The advantages of conducting implementation research as part of the development, as well as delivery and use of HIV prevention and treatment interventions, are increasingly being recognized. Qualitative methods are gaining recognition in implementation-oriented research on HIV as vehicles for examining particular implementation outcomes and for identifying barriers and facilitators to intervention uptake. However, they have more to offer. This article presents 3 case examples illustrating the use of qualitative research to explain intervention processes and outcomes, with the goal of clarifying "how and why" they work.

The first example identifies active ingredients in an intervention aimed at improving antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence. The second proposes an explanation of the processes through which community-based HIV testing with follow-up support may bring about linkage to care and prevention services. The third unpacks the dynamics of a novel strategy of delivering oral pre-exposure prophylaxis and ART to HIV serodiscordant couples, showing how the organization of services positively impacted participating couples, enabling them to use oral pre-exposure prophylaxis and ART effectively to prevent HIV transmission.

Qualitative methods contribute to implementation research for HIV intervention development by (1) offering an alternative to framework-driven investigation, (2) providing tools for understanding user experience of interventions, and (3) developing local explanations of intervention processes and outcomes.

In various ways, qualitative methods contribute to implementation research by deepening and "thickening" conceptualization of implementation problems. Stronger conceptualizations lead to stronger implementation strategies and, thus, to increased use of evidence-based interventions for HIV prevention and treatment as they are made available to the public worldwide.