Congratulations to Brandon Knettel, assistant professor, and his team for their award from the Duke Center for Aids (CFAR) Research Micro Grant Program entitled: “Implementation Strategies for Integrating Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in HIV Care.” The CFAR is a Center Core Grant (P30) funded by the NIH. This award is for a one-year period with a start date of November 1, 2021. 

In North Carolina, opioids contributed to 1,783 overdose deaths in 2018, making it the leading cause of injury deaths in the state. The relationship between HIV and Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is bidirectional and syndemic. People living with HIV (PLWH) are commonly treated with opioids, creating risk for addiction. Simultaneously, PLWH who use opioids experience increased attrition across the HIV care continuum, including delayed entry into care, suboptimal linkage to treatment, and lower adherence to antiretroviral therapy. OUD and HIV are both chronic conditions that are treatable with daily medication, with outcomes enhanced by strong psychosocial support; however, few prior studies have examined the potential benefits and consequences of integrating HIV and OUD treatment, particularly related to HIV care engagement. The overall objective for Knettel and his team is to obtain stakeholder perspectives on the integration of treatment for OUD in HIV care in Mecklenburg Country, NC. These data will be used to develop a package of implementation strategies for care integration to be tested in a future clinical trial.