Community Connectedness & Its Association with Overall Health among Black MSM
La Shon Webb1, Obie S. McNair, MPH2
1Mississippi INBRE Service Scholar, Tougaloo College, Tougaloo, MS
2My Brother’s Keeper Inc., Jackson, MS
The LGBT population has experienced stigma within the healthcare field which has formed a vicious cycle that turns them away, particularly black gay men. Studies show that two common themes affirm patients’ distrust: 1) provider bias and 2) provider discomfort with this population. However, it has been shown that the efforts of social networking among black MSM’s can ensure better health outcomes. We extracted data from the My Brother’s Keeper’s Connect With Us program, who’s goal was to improve sexual health outcomes and social networks for black gay men. Preliminary data analysis included frequency and crosstab analysis, which was followed by correlation analysis. Using our preliminary data from the Post-Intervention surveys, which was collected from 391 participants, two key themes emerged: (1) Healthcare providers are not asking the proper questions in relation to the health status of Black MSM, and (2) Black MSM like and believe that creating a social network is important and helps curate better health outcomes. These two common themes help to affirm the need for proper training on aiding MSM for healthcare providers. Findings from the studies indicate a relationship between Black MSM sexual health behaviors and highlights the importance of developing a social network to address health concerns holistically for Black MSM. Future research should continue to focus on the relationship between Black MSM and healthcare providers and how social networks help to provide better health outcomes to Black MSM. Acknowledgement: This work was funded by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the NIGMS under grant number P20GM103476.