Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40944333›Full record

ArticleJournal of the International AIDS Society2025

Impact of the Anti-Homosexuality Act on HIV service delivery in Uganda: Evidence from community-led monitoring.

Allan Nsubuga, Frank Mugisha, Beatrice Ajonye, Kenneth Mwehonge, Elise Lankiewicz, Patrick Drake, Esther Joan Kilande, Alice Kayongo, Alana R Sharp

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of the International AIDS Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Allan NsubugaSexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), Kampala, Uganda.
Frank MugishaSexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), Kampala, Uganda.
Beatrice AjonyeInternational Community of Women Living with HIV - Eastern Africa (ICWEA), Kampala, Uganda.
Kenneth MwehongeHealth Promotion and Social Development (HEPS), Kampala, Uganda.
Elise LankiewiczAndelson Office of Public Policy, amfAR, Washington, DC, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9642-4495
Patrick DrakeData, Et cetera, Washington, DC, USA.
Esther Joan KilandeHealth Promotion and Social Development (HEPS), Kampala, Uganda.
Alice KayongoO'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.
Alana R SharpData, Et cetera, Washington, DC, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6737-6168

Funding

International AIDS SocietyUnited States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionIn 2023, the Ugandan government enacted the Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA), which included expanded and intensified criminal penalties for consensual same-sex relations. While arrests, harassment and violence have been reported, evidence of the AHA's impact on HIV healthcare delivery is limited. Community-led monitoring (CLM) is an accountability mechanism that uses community-gathered evidence to advocate for improved healthcare quality and is well-positioned to describe changes in access and quality of care.

methodsData from the CLM programme in Uganda were used to identify changes in healthcare delivery and use related to the AHA. As part of the CLM programme, routine survey data were collected from clients and managers in 320 public health facilities and 50 drop-in centres (DICs) from 2022 to 2024. Survey data were analysed using a difference-in-differences logistic model to measure changes in indicator measures before and after the AHA was signed into law. Seven semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with DIC facility managers, deductively coded and thematically analysed.

resultsIn public health facilities and DICs, the proportion of respondents identified as men who have sex with men (MSM) declined significantly after AHA. In facilities, all categories of key populations (KPs) reported high levels of discrimination. After the AHA, MSM reported significant reductions in key HIV-related services compared to other populations, including lower rates of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) counselling, lower participation in support groups and having fewer friendly staff interactions. In DICs, all types of clients were less likely to be referred to health facilities, receive PrEP and find the DIC easy to access after the AHA was signed. DIC managers described experiencing harassment, violence and staffing challenges due to AHA, which they responded to by leveraging partnerships with local and global allies, providing virtual services, and seeking registration as full-service clinics.

conclusionsData from the Uganda CLM programme provide an early view of the impact of the AHA on service delivery in public health facilities and DICs. While DICs and health facilities developed strategies to build resiliency and adapt, the AHA created significant barriers to care. These findings provide empirical warnings of the barriers experienced by KPs when accessing healthcare services in a criminalized context.

Indexed as

Delivery of Health CareHIV InfectionsAdultFemaleHumansMaleSurveys and QuestionnairesUgandaAnti‐Homosexuality Actcommunity‐led monitoringcriminalizationmen who have sex with menpolicy impactUganda

Identifiers

PMID40944333
PMCPMC12432269

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.