Lost to Care in Bexar: What Role Do Individual and Contextual Factors Play in HIV/AIDS Patient Retention in a Majority Hispanic Community?

Heidy Colon-Lugo, University of Texas at San Antonio
Susanne Schmidt, University of Texas at San Antonio
Roberto Villarreal, University Health System
P. Johnelle Sparks, University of Texas at San Antonio

Hispanics comprise the second largest group of newly diagnosed HIV cases in the US. While HIV/AIDS is a highly treatable disease, a strict treatment plan is required for optimal disease management and quality of life. However, patient retention is a critical issue as one third of HIV patients were lost to care in Texas. We examine the role that individual and contextual factors play in HIV patient retention in a minority-majority Hispanic setting as no study to date has investigated this issue. We use data from medical records of HIV positive patients seen at a healthcare clinic in Bexar County, Texas from 2008-2013 linked to the 2012 5-year American Community Survey. We estimate multilevel logistic regression models to examine the association between the individual and contextual characteristics and the risk of being/becoming lost to care aiming to gain insights into potentially modifiable community risk factors for lack of patient retention.