Centre for Community Based Research, Human Sciences Research Council, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
Department of Clinical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
J Med Internet Res. 2022 Dec 12;24(12):e39816. doi: 10.2196/39816.
HIV testing rates in sub-Saharan Africa remain below the targeted threshold, and primary care facilities struggle to provide adequate services. Innovative approaches that leverage digital technologies could improve HIV testing and access to treatment.
This study aimed to examine the feasibility and acceptability of Nolwazi_bot. It is an isiZulu-speaking conversational agent designed to support HIV self-testing (HIVST) in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
Nolwazi_bot was designed with 4 different personalities that users could choose when selecting a counselor for their HIVST session. We recruited a convenience sample of 120 consenting adults and invited them to undertake an HIV self-test facilitated by the Nolwazi_bot. After testing, participants completed an interviewer-led posttest structured survey to assess their experience with the chatbot-supported HIVST.
Participants (N=120) ranged in age from 18 to 47 years, with half of them being men (61/120, 50.8%). Of the 120 participants, 111 (92.5%) had tested with a human counselor more than once. Of the 120 participants, 45 (37.5%) chose to be counseled by the female Nolwazi_bot personality aged between 18 and 25 years. Approximately one-fifth (21/120, 17.5%) of the participants who underwent an HIV self-test guided by the chatbot tested positive. Most participants (95/120, 79.2%) indicated that their HIV testing experience with a chatbot was much better than that with a human counselor. Many participants (93/120, 77.5%) reported that they felt as if they were talking to a real person, stating that the response tone and word choice of Nolwazi_bot reminded them of how they speak in daily conversations.
The study provides insights into the potential of digital technology interventions to support HIVST in low-income and middle-income countries. Although we wait to see the full benefits of mobile health, technological interventions including conversational agents or chatbots provide us with an excellent opportunity to improve HIVST by addressing the barriers associated with clinic-based HIV testing.
撒哈拉以南非洲的艾滋病毒检测率仍低于目标阈值，基层医疗机构难以提供充分的服务。利用数字技术的创新方法可以提高艾滋病毒检测和治疗的可及性。
本研究旨在检验 Nolwazi_bot 的可行性和可接受性。这是一个祖鲁语会话代理，旨在支持南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省的艾滋病毒自我检测 (HIVST)。
Nolwazi_bot 设计了 4 种不同的个性，用户在选择 HIVST 会话的顾问时可以选择。我们招募了 120 名同意参与的成年人作为便利样本，并邀请他们进行 Nolwazi_bot 协助的艾滋病毒自我检测。测试后，参与者完成了由访谈者主导的后测结构化调查，以评估他们对基于聊天机器人的 HIVST 的体验。
参与者（N=120）年龄在 18 至 47 岁之间，其中一半为男性（61/120，50.8%）。120 名参与者中，有 111 人（92.5%）曾不止一次接受过人类顾问的测试。在 120 名参与者中，45 人（37.5%）选择由年龄在 18 至 25 岁之间的女性 Nolwazi_bot 个性进行辅导。大约五分之一（21/120，17.5%）接受聊天机器人引导进行艾滋病毒自我检测的参与者检测结果呈阳性。大多数参与者（95/120，79.2%）表示，他们对与聊天机器人进行艾滋病毒检测的体验要好得多。许多参与者（93/120，77.5%）表示，他们感觉就像在和一个真正的人交谈，他们说 Nolwazi_bot 的回复语气和用词选择让他们想起了日常对话中的说话方式。
本研究为数字技术干预措施支持低收入和中等收入国家的 HIVST 提供了一些见解。虽然我们还在等待移动健康的全部好处，但包括会话代理或聊天机器人在内的技术干预措施为我们提供了一个极好的机会，通过解决与诊所艾滋病毒检测相关的障碍来提高 HIVST。
