Sarah Bernays
Biographic Data
| ID | 5993099 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Sarah Bernays |
| GIVEN NAMES | Sarah |
| FAMILY NAME | Bernays |
| SIGNATURE | BERNAYS S |
| AFFILIATIONS | The University of Sydney |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 24 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 37 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 24 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2008 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Pathways of onward HIV disclosure in relationships among young people living with vertically acquired HIV receiving antiretroviral therapy
For young people living with HIV (YPLHIV) navigating their status since birth, managing onward disclosure of a potentially stigmatising condition in relationships is challenging, and may or may not lead to social support, with implications for wellbeing. In a clinical trial setting in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, we investigate how young people living with vertically acquired HIV navigate onward disclosure. Data were from the qualitative componen…
‘They (researchers) don't have to justify their presence, why do we have to justify ours?’
Community Advisory Boards (CABs), adopted from the HIV response, have become the most institutionalised form of community engagement in tuberculosis (TB) research. However, little work has examined the historical-political processes shaping their development or how these dynamics influence community participation in TB research governance. This qualitative study draws on 28 semi-structured interviews with TB advocates, community engagement practi…
Principles and priorities for integrated tuberculosis screening and care
Tuberculosis predominates in communities with multiple health and socioeconomic vulnerabilities. Tuberculosis diagnosis presents an opportunity for expanded health services to tuberculosis-affected households. We conducted a modified Delphi process to ascertain if and how expanded services should be offered to people with tuberculosis and their households. Purposively invited panellists were identified through professional networks and included r…
Biomedical technologies in context
Novel point-of-care tools tailored to contextual needs are critical for improving sexually transmitted infection (STI) management. The genital inflammation test (GIFT) is a point-of-care test under development to detect genital inflammation. A potential use of GIFT is as a screening tool to identify asymptomatic women who may have a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or bacterial vaginosis (BV), followed by confirmatory STI- testing if GIFT-pos…
The role of parents and caregivers in motivating adolescents with HIV to participate in a long-acting injectable ART clinical trial in South Africa and Uganda
In this paper, we describe the central role of caregivers in shaping adolescent engagement with long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI-ART) within the Long-Acting Treatment for Adolescents (LATA) trial conducted in South Africa and Uganda. Adolescents' participation in HIV care is embedded within emotional, moral, and cultural relationships rather than individual decision-making. Drawing on the bioecological model of human development…
I can get all the services I want, without fear of being judged ’
Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services often do not appeal to youth, leading to limited engagement and poor outcomes. We co-designed a community-based integrated HIV and SRH service with and for youth (16-24 years) in Zimbabwe (CHIEDZA) and investigated its acceptability. Qualitative data from observations of CHIEDZA services ( n = 58), and in-depth interviews with healthcare providers ( n = 51), mobilisers ( n = 23), and clients ( n = 63)…
Living in the shadows
Young people living with HIV still face persistent HIV stigma and discrimination. • Practising secrecy can create barriers to care and support for youth. • Treatment adherence is inextricably linked to fears about disclosure. • Youth develop different strategies to maintain secrecy over time
“It felt like a weight was being taken off of my shoulders”
In South Africa, many young people relocate from rural to urban areas for education, attending day schools while residing in rented accommodation. Migration exposes them to risk, including alcohol and drug abuse, sexual exploitation and violence. We developed and assessed a support system for young migrants, aged 14-24 in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Five trained peer navigators conducted needs assessments for 283 young internal migrants between …
Examining the resilience of mobile youth in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
The accessibility and availability of protective resources offered support and provided strength to young people. This fostered resilience for these young people and in a way incorporated aspects of the collectivist communities they live in. Considering resources that are easily available in resource limited settings is important as young people may be more comfortable and confident to access and use. These protective factors may help curb some o…
Leaving no one behind? Addressing inequitable HIV outcomes by attending to diversity
Leaving nobody behind in the fight to end the HIV epidemic as a public health threat depends on addressing inequities in optimal HIV outcomes. Consistently overlooked in research, policy and programming are young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and intersex (LGBTQI+) people who are living with HIV. This study engaged young LGBTQI+ people in Zimbabwe to better understand their experiences of living with HIV and the support t…
A conceptualization and psychometric evaluation of positive psychological outcome measures used in adolescents and young adults living with HIV
Introduction Sub-Saharan Africa bears the greatest burden of HIV, with comorbid mental conditions highly prevalent in people living with HIV. It is important to evaluate the mental health of adolescents and young adults living with HIV (AYALHIV) comprehensively by measuring both negative and positive psychological constructs. There has been a proliferation of interest in positive psychological outcome measures, but the evidence of their psychomet…
Three Reasons Why Expecting ‘Recovery’ in the Context of the Mental Health Impacts of Climate Change Is Problematic
Global warming is bringing with it continued long-term changes in the climate system. Extreme weather-related events, which are already becoming a daily reality around the world, are predicted to be more intense and frequent in the future. The widespread occurrence of these events and climate change more broadly are being experienced collectively and at scale and do not affect populations evenly. These climate changes have profound impacts on men…
Interrupted Access to and Use of Family Planning Among Youth in a Community‐Based Service in Zimbabwe During the First Year of the Covid‐19 Pandemic
The COVID‐19 pandemic has had serious impacts on economic, social, and health systems, and fragile public health systems have become overburdened in many countries, exacerbating existing service delivery challenges. This study describes the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on family planning services within a community‐based integrated HIV and sexual and reproductive health intervention for youth aged 16–24 years being trialled in Zimbabwe (CHIEDZ…
From Digital Mental Health to Digital Social and Emotional Wellbeing
This paper describes the first six years of a government-initiated project to train Indigenous health professionals in digital mental health (d-MH). It illustrates how community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods were used to enable this "top-down" project to be transformed into a 'ground-up' community-guided process; and how, in turn, the guidance from the local Indigenous community partners went on to influence the national government'…
Factors affecting healthcare pathways for chronic lung disease management in Vietnam
The study demonstrated the need for improved access to timely diagnosis and treatment of chronic lung disease within the lower level of the health system. This can be achieved by enhancing the communication skills and diagnostic capacity of local healthcare workers. Health education programmes for patients and caregivers will contribute to improved control of lung disease
Access to care for childhood cancers in India
Although participants acknowledged that accessing childhood cancer care in India is limited by several barriers, perceptions of these barriers varied. Our findings illustrate that health care provider perceptions are shaped by their experiences, interests and standpoints, which are useful towards informing policy for childhood cancers within UHC
Conducting in-depth interviews with and without voice recorders
The use of audio recordings has become a taken-for-granted approach to generating transcripts of in-depth interviewing and group discussions. In this paper we begin by describing circumstances where the use of a recorder is not, or may not be, possible, before sharing our comparative analysis of audio-recorded transcriptions and interview scripts made from notes taken during the interview (by experienced, well-trained interviewers). Our compariso…
A health care labyrinth
This qualitative study highlights and explores some of the barriers to childhood cancer care in India. Our findings show that referral pathways are intrinsically linked to the treatment experience and there should be better recognition of the financial and emotional challenges faced by the family that occur prior to definitive diagnosis and treatment. This information would help inform various stakeholders and contribute to improved interventions…
Manuscript title
The study highlights that adherence knowledge and desire alone is insufficient to overcome the familial and structural barriers to maintaining CTX-p. Improving adherence to CTX-p among HEI will require interventions to improve male involvement, reduce HIV stigma in communities and ensure adequate supply of drugs
What am I 'living' with? Growing up with HIV in Uganda and Zimbabwe
As paediatric HIV treatment has become increasingly available across the world, the global perinatally infected cohort is ageing. However, we know surprisingly little about what it is like to grow up with HIV in resource-stretched settings. We draw on findings from a prospective, qualitative study with HIV-positive children, their carers and healthcare workers from four clinics in Uganda and Zimbabwe to examine children's experiences of living wi…
Narrating the social relations of initiating injecting drug use
“You should be grateful to have medicines”
The expectation that universal HIV treatment access in resource-stretched settings will reduce stigma is a powerful aspiration that has been incorporated into a global rhetoric of hope around the HIV pandemic. Between 2005 and 2007, we undertook qualitative longitudinal research with people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) in Serbia. We draw here upon the thematic analysis of prospective interview accounts of 20 individuals to analyse PLHIV's percept…
Experiencing uncertain HIV treatment delivery in a transitional setting
BACKGROUND: Advances in HIV treatment availability mean that the promise of highly active anti-retroviral treatment to turn HIV into a manageable chronic illness is becoming a reality for millions. However the mutability of the virus means that treatment adherence demands are high, and the supply of these life-saving treatments needs to be constant. The onus is generally placed on the individual to adhere, and there is little focus in research or…
Trust, disruption and responsibility in accounts of injecting equipment sharing and hepatitis C risk
Accounts of health-related risk behaviour are generated in a social context of risk acceptability and moral responsibility. Drawing upon qualitative semi-structured interviews with injecting drug users (IDUs) in Belgrade, Serbia (n = 67) and Podgorica and Bar, Montenegro (n = 32), we explore drug injectors' accounts of sharing injecting equipment, and ‘discriminative’ and ‘exceptional’ sharing specifically, alongside accounts of hepatitis C risk.…
Conducting in-depth interviews with and without voice recorders
The use of audio recordings has become a taken-for-granted approach to generating transcripts of in-depth interviewing and group discussions. In this paper we begin by describing circumstances where the use of a recorder is not, or may not be, possible, before sharing our comparative analysis of audio-recorded transcriptions and interview scripts made from notes taken during the interview (by experienced, well-trained interviewers). Our compariso…
What am I 'living' with? Growing up with HIV in Uganda and Zimbabwe
As paediatric HIV treatment has become increasingly available across the world, the global perinatally infected cohort is ageing. However, we know surprisingly little about what it is like to grow up with HIV in resource-stretched settings. We draw on findings from a prospective, qualitative study with HIV-positive children, their carers and healthcare workers from four clinics in Uganda and Zimbabwe to examine children's experiences of living wi…
Trust, disruption and responsibility in accounts of injecting equipment sharing and hepatitis C risk
Accounts of health-related risk behaviour are generated in a social context of risk acceptability and moral responsibility. Drawing upon qualitative semi-structured interviews with injecting drug users (IDUs) in Belgrade, Serbia (n = 67) and Podgorica and Bar, Montenegro (n = 32), we explore drug injectors' accounts of sharing injecting equipment, and ‘discriminative’ and ‘exceptional’ sharing specifically, alongside accounts of hepatitis C risk.…
Experiencing uncertain HIV treatment delivery in a transitional setting
BACKGROUND: Advances in HIV treatment availability mean that the promise of highly active anti-retroviral treatment to turn HIV into a manageable chronic illness is becoming a reality for millions. However the mutability of the virus means that treatment adherence demands are high, and the supply of these life-saving treatments needs to be constant. The onus is generally placed on the individual to adhere, and there is little focus in research or…
“You should be grateful to have medicines”
The expectation that universal HIV treatment access in resource-stretched settings will reduce stigma is a powerful aspiration that has been incorporated into a global rhetoric of hope around the HIV pandemic. Between 2005 and 2007, we undertook qualitative longitudinal research with people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) in Serbia. We draw here upon the thematic analysis of prospective interview accounts of 20 individuals to analyse PLHIV's percept…
Narrating the social relations of initiating injecting drug use
Manuscript title
The study highlights that adherence knowledge and desire alone is insufficient to overcome the familial and structural barriers to maintaining CTX-p. Improving adherence to CTX-p among HEI will require interventions to improve male involvement, reduce HIV stigma in communities and ensure adequate supply of drugs
What am I 'living' with? Growing up with HIV in Uganda and Zimbabwe
As paediatric HIV treatment has become increasingly available across the world, the global perinatally infected cohort is ageing. However, we know surprisingly little about what it is like to grow up with HIV in resource-stretched settings. We draw on findings from a prospective, qualitative study with HIV-positive children, their carers and healthcare workers from four clinics in Uganda and Zimbabwe to examine children's experiences of living wi…
A health care labyrinth
This qualitative study highlights and explores some of the barriers to childhood cancer care in India. Our findings show that referral pathways are intrinsically linked to the treatment experience and there should be better recognition of the financial and emotional challenges faced by the family that occur prior to definitive diagnosis and treatment. This information would help inform various stakeholders and contribute to improved interventions…
Access to care for childhood cancers in India
Although participants acknowledged that accessing childhood cancer care in India is limited by several barriers, perceptions of these barriers varied. Our findings illustrate that health care provider perceptions are shaped by their experiences, interests and standpoints, which are useful towards informing policy for childhood cancers within UHC
Conducting in-depth interviews with and without voice recorders
The use of audio recordings has become a taken-for-granted approach to generating transcripts of in-depth interviewing and group discussions. In this paper we begin by describing circumstances where the use of a recorder is not, or may not be, possible, before sharing our comparative analysis of audio-recorded transcriptions and interview scripts made from notes taken during the interview (by experienced, well-trained interviewers). Our compariso…
From Digital Mental Health to Digital Social and Emotional Wellbeing
This paper describes the first six years of a government-initiated project to train Indigenous health professionals in digital mental health (d-MH). It illustrates how community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods were used to enable this "top-down" project to be transformed into a 'ground-up' community-guided process; and how, in turn, the guidance from the local Indigenous community partners went on to influence the national government'…
Factors affecting healthcare pathways for chronic lung disease management in Vietnam
The study demonstrated the need for improved access to timely diagnosis and treatment of chronic lung disease within the lower level of the health system. This can be achieved by enhancing the communication skills and diagnostic capacity of local healthcare workers. Health education programmes for patients and caregivers will contribute to improved control of lung disease
Interrupted Access to and Use of Family Planning Among Youth in a Community‐Based Service in Zimbabwe During the First Year of the Covid‐19 Pandemic
The COVID‐19 pandemic has had serious impacts on economic, social, and health systems, and fragile public health systems have become overburdened in many countries, exacerbating existing service delivery challenges. This study describes the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on family planning services within a community‐based integrated HIV and sexual and reproductive health intervention for youth aged 16–24 years being trialled in Zimbabwe (CHIEDZ…
Three Reasons Why Expecting ‘Recovery’ in the Context of the Mental Health Impacts of Climate Change Is Problematic
Global warming is bringing with it continued long-term changes in the climate system. Extreme weather-related events, which are already becoming a daily reality around the world, are predicted to be more intense and frequent in the future. The widespread occurrence of these events and climate change more broadly are being experienced collectively and at scale and do not affect populations evenly. These climate changes have profound impacts on men…
Leaving no one behind? Addressing inequitable HIV outcomes by attending to diversity
Leaving nobody behind in the fight to end the HIV epidemic as a public health threat depends on addressing inequities in optimal HIV outcomes. Consistently overlooked in research, policy and programming are young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and intersex (LGBTQI+) people who are living with HIV. This study engaged young LGBTQI+ people in Zimbabwe to better understand their experiences of living with HIV and the support t…
A conceptualization and psychometric evaluation of positive psychological outcome measures used in adolescents and young adults living with HIV
Introduction Sub-Saharan Africa bears the greatest burden of HIV, with comorbid mental conditions highly prevalent in people living with HIV. It is important to evaluate the mental health of adolescents and young adults living with HIV (AYALHIV) comprehensively by measuring both negative and positive psychological constructs. There has been a proliferation of interest in positive psychological outcome measures, but the evidence of their psychomet…
Living in the shadows
Young people living with HIV still face persistent HIV stigma and discrimination. • Practising secrecy can create barriers to care and support for youth. • Treatment adherence is inextricably linked to fears about disclosure. • Youth develop different strategies to maintain secrecy over time
“It felt like a weight was being taken off of my shoulders”
In South Africa, many young people relocate from rural to urban areas for education, attending day schools while residing in rented accommodation. Migration exposes them to risk, including alcohol and drug abuse, sexual exploitation and violence. We developed and assessed a support system for young migrants, aged 14-24 in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Five trained peer navigators conducted needs assessments for 283 young internal migrants between …
Examining the resilience of mobile youth in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
The accessibility and availability of protective resources offered support and provided strength to young people. This fostered resilience for these young people and in a way incorporated aspects of the collectivist communities they live in. Considering resources that are easily available in resource limited settings is important as young people may be more comfortable and confident to access and use. These protective factors may help curb some o…
Pathways of onward HIV disclosure in relationships among young people living with vertically acquired HIV receiving antiretroviral therapy
For young people living with HIV (YPLHIV) navigating their status since birth, managing onward disclosure of a potentially stigmatising condition in relationships is challenging, and may or may not lead to social support, with implications for wellbeing. In a clinical trial setting in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, we investigate how young people living with vertically acquired HIV navigate onward disclosure. Data were from the qualitative componen…
‘They (researchers) don't have to justify their presence, why do we have to justify ours?’
Community Advisory Boards (CABs), adopted from the HIV response, have become the most institutionalised form of community engagement in tuberculosis (TB) research. However, little work has examined the historical-political processes shaping their development or how these dynamics influence community participation in TB research governance. This qualitative study draws on 28 semi-structured interviews with TB advocates, community engagement practi…
Principles and priorities for integrated tuberculosis screening and care
Tuberculosis predominates in communities with multiple health and socioeconomic vulnerabilities. Tuberculosis diagnosis presents an opportunity for expanded health services to tuberculosis-affected households. We conducted a modified Delphi process to ascertain if and how expanded services should be offered to people with tuberculosis and their households. Purposively invited panellists were identified through professional networks and included r…
Biomedical technologies in context
Novel point-of-care tools tailored to contextual needs are critical for improving sexually transmitted infection (STI) management. The genital inflammation test (GIFT) is a point-of-care test under development to detect genital inflammation. A potential use of GIFT is as a screening tool to identify asymptomatic women who may have a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or bacterial vaginosis (BV), followed by confirmatory STI- testing if GIFT-pos…
The role of parents and caregivers in motivating adolescents with HIV to participate in a long-acting injectable ART clinical trial in South Africa and Uganda
In this paper, we describe the central role of caregivers in shaping adolescent engagement with long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI-ART) within the Long-Acting Treatment for Adolescents (LATA) trial conducted in South Africa and Uganda. Adolescents' participation in HIV care is embedded within emotional, moral, and cultural relationships rather than individual decision-making. Drawing on the bioecological model of human development…
I can get all the services I want, without fear of being judged ’
Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services often do not appeal to youth, leading to limited engagement and poor outcomes. We co-designed a community-based integrated HIV and SRH service with and for youth (16-24 years) in Zimbabwe (CHIEDZA) and investigated its acceptability. Qualitative data from observations of CHIEDZA services ( n = 58), and in-depth interviews with healthcare providers ( n = 51), mobilisers ( n = 23), and clients ( n = 63)…
Medicine (13 works) · Qualitative research (13 works) · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions (10 works) · Psychology (10 works) · Sociology (10 works) · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (8 works) · Thematic analysis (8 works) · Nursing (7 works) · Public health (7 works) · Family medicine (6 works)