End Users' Views and Preferences on Prescribing and Taking Postexposure Prophylaxis for Prevention of HIV: Methods to Support World Health Organization Guideline Development.

The 2014 World Health Organization guidelines for human immunodeficiency virus postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) are the first to combine recommendations for all populations and exposures. To inform the development of these guidelines, we gathered views of end users on key aspects of PEP provision. A mixed-methods approach was used to gather views from the populations for whom the guideline will be of relevance. Data gathered from an online survey, focus group discussions, and previously collected data from in-depth interviews with key populations were used to inform the development of recommendations, in particular where there is a paucity of evidence to assess the benefits and harms of an intervention. This was a successful method to gather end users' views and preferences; however, limitations exist in the generalizability and reliability of the evidence. Future guideline development processes should consider methods to include the views of end users to guide the decision-making process.