Table 1 Game Changers session content
Topic | Content | Take-home activity |
|---|---|---|
1: Introduction and stigma reduction | Introduce goals; set rules for confidentiality Introduce and define self-stigma, prevention advocacy, and disclosure decision-making Use discussion of stigma experiences and strategies for coping with stigma to model adaptive coping and promote self-compassion | Practicing self-compassion: Focus on a difficult experience; acknowledge and accept one’s own suffering; offer oneself self-compassion |
2: Empathy, self-compassion, and HIV disclosure | Define empathy and self-compassion, with the aid of role plays Discuss healthy disclosure decision making; use sharing of experiences to highlight potential risks and benefits of disclosure Convey importance of establishing a basis of empathy and self-compassion, and comfort with disclosure and discussing HIV, prior to conducting prevention advocacy | Set personal goals for disclosure: Assess pros and cons of disclosure to at least one social network member, and practice initiating disclosure conversations |
3: Positive living, HIV facts and myths | Share experiences with disclosure and coping with stigma since last session; provide reinforcement and problem solving of challenges Present accurate HIV information and address common HIV myths and misconceptions Discuss how credible advocacy for HIV prevention requires being able to model behaviors in one’s own life (positive living) Set personal goals related to positive living (e.g., adherence) | Listing social network members: In preparation for the next session, participants are asked to think about whom they consider the 20 most important people to them |
4. Introduction to social networks | Introduce the concept of social networks as key to doing advocacy Show participants how to map their own social network and identify alters to whom they have disclosed and discussed prevention and to whom they would like to do so Define the concept of strategically positioned alters and discuss where strategically positioned alters are in participants’ network maps Use network maps and strategically positioned alters to highlight how participants can play a key role in their community through advocacy | Set personal goals for prevention advocacy |
5–7: Prevention advocacy skills building | Share experiences with disclosure and advocacy since last session; provide reinforcement and problem solve challenges Discuss how advocacy protects others, and how PLWH are credible prevention messengers; validate fears and anxiety re: advocacy Discuss strategies for effective advocacy (teaching moments, open-ended questions, rephrasing); use role plays to build skills Discuss how to support alters before and after they have been tested for HIV Use role playing to practice and model effective advocacy | Practice prevention advocacy: Use network map to select alters to target for disclosure and advocacy, including strategically positioned alters |
8: Wrap up and review | Share experiences with disclosure and advocacy since last session; provide reinforcement and problem solve challenges Use role plays to practice and model challenging scenarios Share experiences with program; Affirm commitment toward goals | N/A |