Communication and Connection Fostered Care Engagement During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study of People Living With HIV in New York City

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.