This is an invitation to gay, bisexual, queer, and trans men, and non-binary and Two-Spirit people across Canada who have who have an interest in home and self-testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted and blood borne infections (STBBIs).
Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC) promotes health through research and intervention development. CBRC’s core pillars – community-led research, knowledge exchange, network building, and leadership development – position the organization as a thought leader, transforming ideas into actions that make a difference in our communities. CBRC was incorporated in 1999 and is a non-profit charitable organization. Our main office is located in Vancouver, and we have satellite offices located in Edmonton, Toronto, and Halifax.
We are building a Community Advisory Committee (“CAC”) to provide input on a variety of innovative testing projects across Canada, collectively called Test Now. These projects will provide evidence on the uptake and acceptability of HIV and STBBI home and self-tests, while also gauging the feasibility of a peer linkage service to help connect people with prevention (e.g. PrEP) or treatment (e.g. HIV, Hepatitis C or syphilis). Most of the Test Now studies will take place across Canada, with one project focusing on Indigenous people living in non-urban areas of BC. We will ask participants about their testing preferences to learn about real world use of these new testing technologies. The peer linkage service will support people who use the HIV self-test kits and link them with programs, services, prevention and support. There will be an evaluation of the peer linkage service. We will use all of this information to help community organizations, public health agencies and governments incorporate HIV and STBBI self-testing into future programs.
We are looking for 3-5 Community Advisory Committee members who can work together in English. To promote diversity of opinion and perspective, there is a preference for people who live in non-metropolitan areas (preferably also outside of Ontario and British Columbia), and who identify as trans or non-binary, Indigenous, people of colour, and/or Francophone. We actively recruit peers from the communities we serve and partner with, including people living with HIV and/or Hepatitis C. Our team believes that no research about these communities should be developed without the communities in question being involved every step of the way. “Nothing about us, without us.”
Members of the CAC will provide input on Test Now projects, including how we design the research studies, questionnaires, and reports based on the data. Members will provide suggestions on question content, language, tone, and inclusivity. We do not expect CAC members to have any prior research experience or training!
CAC members will work closely with Christopher Draenos, CBRC’s HIV & STBBI Testing and Linkage Implementation Manager, a Registered Nurse in Toronto who manages the Test Now projects. All meetings and work will take place virtually by email, phone or Internet videoconferencing. Each CAC member will receive a $250 honorarium quarterly (every three months). This will include one meeting that will last up to 2 hours and about 2 hours of work per month to provide feedback. The initial commitment requested for the CAC will be 1 year with possibility for extension.
Please submit your statement of interest (up to 1 page single-spaced) to Chris Draenos ([email protected]). We will start to review applications on July 10, 2020 and we will hold follow-up conversations with interested individuals shortly afterwards.
