Report on the PrEP in NSW Transition Study, 2018–2020

This is a report on the findings from the PrEP in NSW Transition Study. Over the period August 2018 to March 2020, 2,344 people who had been offered HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) as part of the Expanded PrEP Implementation in Communities New South Wales (EPIC-NSW) trial agreed to be followed-up for a further 12 months as part of the PrEP in NSW Transition Study. This was to help us understand how people transitioned out of a PrEP implementation trial to receiving PrEP through general practice and standard-of-care prescribing, and any associated changes in behaviour, attitudes or engagement with sexual health.

Key findings
  • Most participants continued to use PrEP for at least 12 months after the end of the EPIC-NSW trial.
  • More than 10% of participants who were still using PrEP one year after the end of the EPIC-NSW trial had taken a break from it for at least a week once their enrolment in the trial finished.
  • Almost all (85-95%) participants intended to use PrEP daily and participants on average reported being about 90% adherent to their preferred PrEP dosing schedule.
  • After the end of EPIC-NSW, participants mostly bought their PrEP from local pharmacies rather than online.
  • Participants were interested in novel delivery methods for PrEP like injectables and implants, and only one-fifth said that their preferred option would be a daily pill if alternative dosing methods were available and equally effective.