Program on Client Centered Research and Care | Center for Translational Behavioral Science

The Program on Client Centered Research and Care (CCRC), led by Iván Balán, PhD (read full bio) and his longtime collaborator Rebecca Giguere, MPH (read full bio), focuses on two main areas: 1) understanding individual’s experiences interacting with novel behavioral and biomedical interventions, and 2) developing and implementing client-centered counseling interventions to facilitate desired behavior change. Our research on understanding individual’s experiences interacting with novel interventions uses mixed methods approaches to engage end users in early stages of development to glean insights into potential facilitators and obstacles to adoption of the intervention being developed. Our client-centered counseling interventions, often based on Motivational Interviewing, aim to ensure that the perspectives and experiences of clients form the core of the intervention, with counselors facilitating a change process rather than pushing clients to change. Our work spans the translational spectrum, from mixed methods approaches to understand user experiences in Phase 1 clinical trials to implementation of evidence-based counseling interventions, and has often focused on underserved communities in domestic and international settings.

For information about the Program on CCRC, please contact Dr. Ivan Balan via email at Ivan.Balan@med.fsu.edu.

Meet the pCCRC Team

Dr. Iván Balán is the pCCRC Director and a Research Professor in the Florida State University College of Medicine.

Rebecca Giguere, MPH, co-leads the pCCRC and is a Sr Research Associate in the Florida State University College of Medicine.

Onna Brewer, PhD, is a Researcher in the pCCRC under the Florida State University College of Medicine.

Current Research Projects

Interactive Internet-based Motivational Interviewing Training for HIV Counseling Support Staff to Improve Health Communication in HIV Care Interactions

The overall goal of the proposed study is to develop and pilot an interactive, gamified, online, training program in Motivational Interviewing (MI) specifically for HIV counseling support staff (CSS), which includes HIV counselors and community health workers, to improve health communication in status-neutral HIV care interactions. The goal is to train CSS to deliver MI competently so they can integrate MI into all of their healthcare communications with individuals receiving or seeking HIV related services (status-neutral). CSS will be able to access iMI4HIVs after completing a live virtual MI introductory workshop, providing additional skills training that specifically targets MI skills shown by research to affect behavior change outcomes. Thus, iMI4HIV will fill that critical need for additional post-workshop training that is rarely available to community providers.

NIH (R34 MH133468), PI: I. Balán, PhD

2024 - 2027

A PHASE 2 Crossover Study of On-demand PrEP Formulations Comparing Rectal and Oral Tenofovirbased PrEP Evaluating Extended Safety, Acceptability, and Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics

The aim of this study is to develop and pilot test an electronic Screening and Brief Intervention program to reduce substance use and sexual risk behavior among for men who have sex with men awaiting HIV testing at a community-based organization in Argentina.

HIV Prevention Trials Network, PI: I. Balán, PhD

2024 - Nov 2026

Learn about our previous/completed research projects:

Completed Projects

Integration of Electronic SBI(RT) into an HIV Testing Program to Reduce Substance Use and HIV Risk Behavior among MSM in Argentina

The aim of this study is to develop and pilot test an electronic Screening and Brief Intervention program to reduce substance use and sexual risk behavior among men who have sex with men awaiting HIV testing at a community-based organization in Argentina.

NIH, R56; PI: Ivan Balan, PhD

MTN-042 DELIVER: A Phase 3b Safety Study of the Dapivirine Ring and PrEP in Pregnant Women

Our work in in this project focuses on developing and implementing a client-centered adherence counseling intervention to support the use of the dapivarine vaginal ring and oral PrEP during pregnancy in four study sites in Sub-Saharan Africa

NIH (U01 AI68633), PI: S. Hillier, PhD; Sub-award PI: I. Balan, PhD

Use of Novel Mobile Technology to Screen Sexual Partners for HIV and STIs

The goal of this study was to assess the acceptability and feasibility among high-risk MSM of testing sexual partners using a novel rapid HIV and syphilis test paired with a smartphone app to improve ease of use, results display, and linkage to care.

NICHD (R01 HD088156), PI: I. Balan, PhD

2016 - 2021

MTN-043 B-PREPARED: Phase 3B, Open-label, Safety and Drug Detection Study of Dapivirine Vaginal Ring and Oral TRUVADA® in Breastfeeding Mother-Infant Pairs

A sister study to MTN-042 but among breastfeeding mothers, our work on this study focuses on developing and implementing a client-centered adherence counseling intervention to support the use of the dapivarine vaginal ring and oral PrEP among breastfeeding mothers in four study sites in Sub-Saharan Africa.

NIH (U01 AI68633), PI: S. Hillier, PhD; Sub-award PI: I. Balan, PhD

2019 - 2021

MTN-025 The HOPE Study: A Phase 3B Open-Label Follow-on Trial to Assess the Continued Safety of and Adherence to a Vaginal Ring Containing Dapivirine in Women

Our work on this study focused on developing and implementing an adherence counseling intervention to support daviparine ring use among women in 14 study sites in Sub-Saharan Africa. In this study we spearheaded the use of audio-recordings of counseling sessions to monitor the fidelity of the counseling; the largest biomedical HIV prevention study to do so. We also conducted an ancillary study to explore the experiences of study counselors in learning and delivering the adherence counseling intervention as well as in having their sessions audio-recorded for monitoring and receiving feedback on their performance.

NIH (U01 AI68633), PI: S. Hillier, PhD; Sub-award PI: I. Balan, PhD

2016 - 2019

MTN-017: A Phase 2 Randomized Sequence Open Label Expanded Safety and Acceptability Study of Oral Emtricitabine/Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate Tablet and Rectally-Applied Tenofovir Reduced-Glycerin 1% Gel

Our work on this study focused on developing and implementing a client centered adherence intervention used by 25 counselors in multinational research trial to support the use of the study products. Our groundbreaking work on this study included the development and implementation of client-centered approaches to discussing objective biomarkers of adherence with participants and collaborative approaches at improving adherence measurement and reporting.

NIH (U01 AI68633) PI: S. Hillier, PhD; Behavioral Consultant: I. Balán, PhD

2012 - 2015

Rapid Home Test to Reduce Sexual Risk Behavior

Based on the findings of our exploratory study and piloting of rapid HIV testing with sexual partners (Rapid HIV Home Test and Decision-Making among HIV-Negative Men; NIMH R01 MH79692; PI: A. Carballo-Diéguez, Ph.D., I. Balan, Ph.D., Co-Investigator) this efficacy trial demonstrated that HIV self-and partner testing could reduce sexual behavior that place individuals at increased risk of HIV infection. These findings led the CDC to include self- and partner-testing as an evidence-based intervention to prevent HIV infection

NICHD (R01 HD076636) PI: A. Carballo-Dieguez, PhD; Co-Investigator: Balán, PhD

2014 - 2019