|
Date of Report: 08/01/2003
Source: Midwest AETC
MATEC's targeted clinic model is an outreach tool for clinics or agencies that are not currently providing HIV care to a large number of clients. MATEC forms a partnership with these clinics, offering training, technical assistance, and consultation and, in return, the clinic leadership makes a commitment to expand its HIV care. The commitment to a longitudinal relationship means that MATEC is involved over a sustained period of time designing customized interventions that move the clinic towards the goal of providing quality HIV services. While the MATEC staff learns about the clinic's healthcare delivery practices and protocols, the clinic learns about the resources MATEC has to offer them.
The relationship with a primary care clinic in an African-American community in Minnesota that provided reproductive care and treatment for sexually transmitted infections illustrates this process. Using an attitudinal and knowledge assessment, MATEC was able to identify that the clinic staff thought of HIV as a disease of gay white males. Based on this assessment, MATEC designed an intervention to increase staff awareness of the impact of HIV on their patient community. Using a series of Lunch and Learn presentations, MATEC provided training that could be easily offered at the clinic accommodating the staff schedule and availability. The first Lunch and Learn was an HIV infected African-American patient panel, making the connection between HIV and the community. The second Lunch and Learn focused on providing culturally appropriate care and how to best meet the needs of the African-American HIV infected patient. The third presentation, HIV 101, reinforced the connection between STDs and HIV infection.
Following the Lunch and Learn series, the clinic staff began to craft their role in the provision of HIV services. Recognizing the need to do HIV testing, this primary care clinic requested counseling and testing training sessions to help them provide this service. One African- American physician requested to provide clinical care specifically with HIV infected individuals and other physicians, including the medical director, requested individualized preceptorships on providing clinical care to HIV infected clients.
"Start where the clinic is and help move them along," is MATEC's motto. Each intervention has the potential for a cascade effect that can have an impact on other services related to HIV care in the clinic. Because the relationship is a long-term commitment, MATEC is available to provide support through training consultation and technical assistance as the clinic expands healthcare delivery to people living with HIV infection. This mentoring relationship helps establish an environment that is open to change, new ideas and information and ultimately increases the capacity of the clinic to provide HIV care to communities at greatest risk for HIV disease.
|
