|
Date of Report:
10/2008
Source:
Pennsylvania/MidAtlantic AETC
In August, more than 2,300 attendees participated in the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Meeting. Representatives of the Pennsylvania/MidAtlantic AETC (PA/MA AETC) were selected to showcase the capacity building, technical assistance, and training efforts of the region through workshops at this meeting. Many of these efforts are summarized below.
In response to the Health Resource and Service Administration's (HRSA) intensive capacity building initiative, Linda Frank, PhD, MSN, ACRN, Principal Investigator and Executive Director of the PA/MA AETC, and three Local Performance Site (LPS) Directors presented
Capacity Building to Improve Clinical Care, Reduce Disparities, and Improve HIV Case Finding
. Under the direction of Dr. Frank, each LPS of the PA/MA AETC developed an "adopt a clinic" model for capacity building that was showcased at this workshop.
Ann Ricksecker, MPH, Site Director for the Philadelphia LPS, discussed their partnership with the Philadelphia Department of Health's ambulatory health centers. The Philadelphia LPS has provided capacity building activities with this network of health centers for over 15 years. As a result of this partnership, 1) quality HIV care is provided at all eight sites for over 1,000 patients; 2) HIV rapid testing is routinely provided at all walk-in primary care session; 3) over 60 people have been identified and linked to HIV care through the addition of routine HIV rapid testing; and 4) there is a growing collaborative effort developed to support the integration of HIV, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Hepatitis, and Tuberculosis.
Jeannette Southerly, RN, BSN, ACRN, Site Director for the West Virginia LPS, presented their initiative with the Shenandoah Valley Medical System (SVMS). The West Virginia LPS provides ongoing services at this site. For example, monthly patient care conference calls were initiated where the healthcare team from SVMS presents challenging cases to an Infectious Disease Specialist. As a result, SVMS has provided quality care to 107 patients. Patients are able to get care close to where they reside, eliminating the need to travel up to two hours to receive care.
Patricia Lincoln, RN, BSN, ACRN, Site Director for Delaware LPS, described their work with a faith-based HIV counseling and testing center, the Beautiful Gate Outreach Center (BGOC). The Delaware LPS provided technical assistance to help BGOC develop policies and procedures. As a result, they became the first non-traditional center to be granted a license from the Department of Public Health to perform rapid testing. BGOC went on to become an Early Intervention Service clinic as part of Ryan White Part C. In 2006, of the 66 HIV counseling and testing sites in Delaware, BGOC ranked third for the number of tests completed (1,270 tests) and has the second highest number of positive test results.
|
