The Centre for Social Sciences Research (CSSR) and the  Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa  (IDCPPA) at the University of Cape Town invite you to join us for a lunchtime seminar on 11 February 2025 at 12:45pm. The seminar will be presented by Dr Siyanai Zhou.

About the Seminar:

GROWING UP WITH HIV: Insights from Longitudinal Social Science Research on Adolescence.

This presentation borrows from my PhD work, which explored adolescents' experiences and challenges growing up with HIV through a quantitative lens. The findings come from a large cohort study conducted among adolescents living with HIV in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province.

By integrating social science data with routinely collected health data, the study used multiple self-reported ART adherence measures-validated against viral load-to analyse longitudinal adherence patterns. It further examined how variations in adherence impact key HIV treatment outcomes, such as durable viral suppression and mortality. Structural equation models were developed to test hypothesized pathways linking co-occurring risk factors to distinct adherence trajectories over time.

The findings from this research highlight distinct longitudinal adherence patterns, significant inconsistencies in ART adherence, poor viral suppression, and high mortality rates among among adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV). The findings provide insights into potential points for intervention within sub-groups of ALHIV requiring support, and potential scalable strategies to improve long-term HIV treatment outcomes for ALHIV. Overall, his research highlights the need to shift from a one-size-fits-all model of care to customised HIV care.

Speakers

Dr Siyanai Zhou is a biostatistician and postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Social Science Research, specializing in adolescent health and HIV research. His work focuses on applying advanced statistical methodologies to analyse complex public health data, driving data-informed decision-making for adolescent health. His recent research employs group-based trajectory models to examine ART adherence patterns among adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV), and path models to identify key factors influencing sustained adherence, contributing to improved health outcomes in this population.

 11 February 2025
 12:45 - 14:00 SAST
  CSSR Seminar Room, 4.29 Robert Leslie Social Science Building, UCT

Hosted by the Centre for Social Science Research and the Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa