Development of an HIV Prevention and Life Skills Program for Spanish-Speaking Gay and Bisexual Newcomers to Canada (Report‪)‬

Abstract: This article reports on the creation, implementation, and evaluation of a life skills and HIV prevention program for Spanish-speaking gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) who had arrived in Canada in the prior three years. The Nano en Mano program consists of an initial day-long session followed by four two-hour evening sessions addressing HIV prevention, social isolation, social service, and migration issues. The evaluation indicated a significant shift toward safer sex practice and decreased sense of social isolation as expressed in exit interviews. The Mano en Mano intervention thus showed movement in the right direction in relation to HIV prevention and sexual health promotion with evidence of considerable potential to be effective and well liked by participants. Interventions of this type that build social networks and peer bonds in a sexual health context are likely to be useful and effective beyond the Latino newcomers who participated in this pilot program and study. Introduction