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Date of Report:
06/2010
Source:
Pennsylvania/MidAtlantic AETC
The capacity building expertise of the AETC program has a natural role in new initiatives such as the recent CDC promotion of the collaboration and integration of HIV, Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD), and Tuberculosis (TB). The Pennsylvania/MidAtlantic AETC was asked to assist the Philadelphia jurisdiction in 2007-2008 when the CDC National Centers for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP) issued their green paper outlining the problem of separate, "siloed" systems; describing desired levels of integration for prevention services in health care settings; and grounding these initial remarks in routine HIV testing in line with the 2006 revised recommendations.
The AETC engaged in a systems consultation, the first step of which involved completing an inventory/assessment of the collaboration activities that were already in place in the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) within the 4 programs. A workgroup comprised of representatives of these PDPH units was then convened with the assistance of the AETC Local Performance Site in May 2008, and the results of the inventory were discussed in order to launch follow up actions and to further the intentions of integration and collaboration.
Encouraged by the results of the baseline assessment, the workgroup then met quarterly to update the information, share strategies, problem solve barriers and challenges, and enhance and expand the integration. The Philadelphia Office of Addiction Services was added to the internal workgroup after the second meeting as a natural integration focus. The AETC staff, assisted by a public health graduate student from Drexel University School of Public Health, convened and facilitated the quarterly meetings; tracked the progress made and staffed the follow-up activities between meetings; developed and implemented cross training for the integration; provided systems consultation to maximize integration efforts of routine HIV testing into all systems; and promoted the efforts through information dissemination, presentations at national meetings, and an opportunity for the workgroup to meet with Dr. Kevin Fenton of the NCHHSTP to discuss the jurisdiction's efforts.
The results to date of this Pennsylvania/ MidAtlantic AETC two year consultation included an expanded and comprehensive level of program collaboration and service integration within the PDPH; identification of a local PCSI champion (Director of the PDPH Division of Disease Control); the implementation of routine HIV testing in all systems; a plan to launch projects that efficiently integrate prevention and linkage to care services; some geo mapping of multiple disease reporting and active discussions of data sharing for effective planning purposes; and public health staff cross training in the four diseases.
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