Publications
Communication and connection fostered care engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic
2025
Kaufman, J. E., Wu, Y., Manalel, J. A., Gao, A., Antonios, V., Correa, A., Brandenburg, C., Scaccabarrozzi, L., Ernst, J., & Brennan-Ing, M. (2025). Communication and connection fostered care engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study of people living with HIV in New York City. Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. https://doi.org/10.1097/JNC.0000000000000534
Jennie Kaufman, Yiyi Wu, Jasmine Manalel and Mark Brennan-Ing
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted health care systems and resulted in some delays of care, challenging health care engagement among people living with HIV (PLWH). Using in-depth interviews, we explored the experiences of PLWH during the pandemic and identified barriers to and facilitators of care engagement. We recruited 40 participants from a managed-care Medicaid plan in New York City and conducted phone interviews during fall 2023. Thematic analysis identified 5 themes related to care engagement during the pandemic: (a) health care system strains led to some delays in care; (b) patient–provider connections suffered; (c) the pandemic led to personal crises and challenges to care engagement; (d) strong communication and connection reduced disruption and stress; and (e) the pandemic had a lasting effect on interpersonal connections. These findings highlight ways to help maintain care engagement among PLWH even during social and public health crises and contribute to ending the epidemic.