Home based intervention to test and start (HITS) protocol: a cluster randomized controlled trial to reduce HIV related mortality in men and HIV incidence in women through …

Background To realize the full benefits of treatment as prevention in many hyperendemic African contexts, there is an urgent need to increase uptake of HIV testing and HIV treatment among men to reduce the rate of HIV transmission to (particularly young) women. This trial aims to evaluate the effect of two interventions - micro-incentives and a tablet-based male-targeted HIV decision support application - on increasing home-based HIV testing and linkage to HIV care among men with the ultimate aim of reducing HIV-related mortality in men and HIV incidence in young women. Methods/design This is a cluster randomized trial of 45 communities (clusters) in a rural area in the uMkhanyakude district of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa (2018–2021). The study is built upon the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI)‘s HIV testing platform, which offers annual …