Released May 30, 2025

About the Webinar

As HIV prevention continues to evolve, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has emerged as an effective and cost-efficient approach to preventing transmission. This webinar unpacks essential strategies for primary care providers, mental health specialists, and substance abuse clinicians who are uniquely positioned to expand PrEP access and help combat the HIV epidemic. A live Q&A with Drs. Treisman and Hoffmann follows the presentation.

Topics Covered Include:

• How primary care and psychiatry are well situated to initiate and support PrEP
• Factors that influence patient persistence
• The role of the physician in PrEP
• The future of PreP

Webinar Recording

Webinar Audio

Webinar Summary

In this informative webinar, Drs. Glenn Treisman and Christopher Hoffmann provided an overview of current strategies and challenges in using pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention. Despite significant advances in HIV prevention, thousands of new infections still occur annually in the United States.

The presenters discussed the evolution of PrEP options, highlighting the effectiveness of daily oral regimens like tenofovir/emtricitabine, as well as newer long-acting injectable medications such as cabotegravir and the soon-to-be-approved lenacapavir. All these options, when taken as prescribed, reduce the risk of HIV by up to 99%. However, they noted that adherence remains a challenge, particularly among populations that are less engaged with regular healthcare.

A key focus of the webinar was on the barriers to PrEP uptake and retention, especially among patients seen in primary care, mental health, and substance use treatment settings—providers who may not be as familiar with PrEP prescribing. The speakers emphasized the importance of provider education and the need for a harm reduction approach, where even partial or intermittent PrEP use is seen as beneficial. They also discussed the role of positive reinforcement and patient-centered communication in supporting adherence, particularly for individuals who are motivated more by immediate rewards than by fear of consequences.

Practical considerations for PrEP management were also reviewed, including the need for initial and ongoing HIV testing, monitoring for sexually transmitted infections, and addressing the logistical challenges of injectable PrEP administration. The presenters encouraged interdisciplinary collaboration, urging HIV specialists to support and educate colleagues in other fields to broaden access to PrEP.

In conclusion, Drs. Treisman and Hoffmann highlighted the critical role of expanding PrEP access and education beyond traditional HIV care settings, stressing that collaborative, patient-centered approaches are essential to reducing new HIV infections and improving public health outcomes.

View a PDF of the webinar summary:
https://www.unboundmedicine.com/ann/webinars/Preventing_HIV_in_2025_May_20...

About The Presenters

Glenn Jordan Treisman, MD

Glenn Jordan Treisman, MD is the Eugene Meyer III Professor of Psychiatry and Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is Director of the AIDS Psychiatry Service and The Johns Hopkins Pain Treatment Program. The Pain Treatment Program provides care for chronic pain syndromes and is a national referral resource for patients with intractable pain. He was the co-founder and co-director of the Amos Center, a program that studies atypical GI disorders and the relationship between food, the nervous system of the GI tract, the microbiome, and disease and is now the co-founder of a new, multidisciplinary clinic for dysautonomia. Dr. Treisman is involved in the care of psychiatrically ill HIV infected patients and has been since early in the epidemic.

Christopher Hoffmann MD, MPH

Christopher Hoffmann MD, MPH is an Associate Professor and clinician scientist in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He attended medical school at Oregon Health and Sciences University followed by an internal medicine residency and infectious diseases fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He is an HIV and general infectious diseases clinician providing outpatient HIV primary care and inpatient infectious consults. His research is focused on HIV diagnosis and care delivery to marginalized populations, primarily in southern Africa. His has been funded by grants from the NIH, USAID, US CDC, Global Fund, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He is involved in clinical education as the Director of the John Hopkins – New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute HIV Guidelines program and the Editor-in-Chief of the Johns Hopkins HIV POC-IT Guide.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Johns Hopkins POC-IT Guides: https://www.hopkinsguides.com​

Unbound Medicine: https://www.unboundmedicine.com