Get Connected Efficacy Trial

The number of HIV infections among men who have sex with men aged 15-24 (YMSM) has grown significantly in the past decade. For YMSM to successfully engage in HIV prevention and care services requires that they navigate a series of multilevel barriers operating at the individual (e.g., risk awareness, self-efficacy to get tested), systems (e.g., costs, medical mistrust, lack of culturally competent care), and structural (e.g., homelessness, costs, stigma) levels. The investigators developed Get Connected (GC) as an online brief intervention that employs individual and systems-level tailoring technology to reduce barriers to linkage to competent prevention care (e.g., HIV/STI testing, PrEP) for YMSM (ages 15-24). After a formative phase comprised of assessing HIV testing sites' performance via a mystery shopping procedure, the investigators will test the efficacy of GC for increasing YMSM's successful engagement in locally appropriate HIV prevention and care using a two-arm randomized controlled trial. The trial will compare the full GC intervention to the GC HIV test locator. Participants will be recruited from three cities (Houston, Philadelphia and Atlanta) characterized by high HIV incidence, and followed over 12 months. Assessments will be collected at 30 days and at 3, 6, 9 and 12 month follow-up. Specific Aims include: Aim 1: Examine the quality of HIV test counseling and PrEP-related referrals to YMSM within local HIV/STI testing sites in 3 cities (Houston, Philadelphia \& Atlanta). Aim 2: Test the efficacy of GC for increasing HIV-negative or HIV-unknown YMSM's successful uptake of HIV prevention services (e.g., routine HIV/STI testing) and PrEP awareness and willingness, as compared to the attention-control condition over a 12-month period. Aim 3: Qualitatively assess sites' satisfaction with performance assessments and their improvements in service delivery when working with YMSM across the three regions.