Brian Goings has been working to improve the lives of people with HIV since he was 14, when he signed up as a volunteer youth advocate in his hometown of Greenville, North Carolina. Now a project coordinator with Duke’s Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research, he has seen firsthand the many barriers that prevent men, particularly young Black men, from taking full advantage of HIV education and treatment programs.
“Many times they don’t go to appointments because they are too busy working to make sure they have a roof over their heads,” Goings said in a recent conversation with DGHI. The multiple sources of stress they feel as racial and gender minorities can lead them to substance abuse and other complicating health issues, he added.
At Duke, Goings works with a project known as Style 2.0, or Strength Through Youth Living Empowered, which seeks to provide better mental health support for HIV-positive young Black men in the Triangle area who identify as gay, bisexual or who has sexual relationships with other men. Led by DGHI associate research professor Sara LeGrand, the Style team uses a range of interpersonal and online contacts to encourage greater participation in HIV treatment and care.
Watch the full conversation with Goings below.
