Date of Report: 03/2010
Source: Northwest AETC
As a provider for the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC); a provider at the Ryan White Program-funded HIV clinic in a Seattle community public hospital where many incarcerated patients are seen post-release; and the Northwest AETC's Corrections Program Director, Lara Strick, MD, MSc aims to improve the health of incarcerated patients within the correctional system in Washington State and throughout the Northwest region. Dr. Strick was introduced to prison medicine while an infectious disease fellow through the efforts of the Northwest AETC's former Corrections Program Director, Dr. Stephen Tabet. Through this experience, Dr. Strick negotiated her position within the Washington State DOC as its statewide Infectious Disease Physician. As a key HIV provider within the Washington State prison system, she was tapped to share her expertise at Northwest AETC trainings targeting correctional providers. She has since taken over the role of Northwest AETC Corrections Program Director, expanding and enhancing educational opportunities for Northwest providers serving incarcerated patients in both prisons and jails. Currently, Dr. Strick spends much of her Northwest AETC time working with local performance site and central office staff to develop and implement programs targeting correctional providers. She helps organize two annual HIV Corrections Conferences in Washington and Oregon, and offers a prison-based preceptorship for providers with a focus on the care of HIV-infected patients within the correctional setting. Dr. Strick is developing a resources page for the Northwest AETC website (www.NorthwestAETC.org) targeting providers who serve incarcerated patients and has developed a corrections-specific case study for the HIV Web Study website (www.HIVwebstudy.org). Dr. Strick is happy to be a resource to other regional AETCs in regards to correctional trainings or concerns. | Dr. Strick's favorite strategies and resources for providers serving HIV-infected incarcerated patients |
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 | The importance of identifying HIV expert trainers with clinical experience in correctional settings: Clinicians working within correctional systems face unique issues in providing HIV care. Knowledge of both HIV and correctional systems is essential in providing the most relevant and useful information and resources to providers serving incarcerated patients. |  | | Importance of persistence: Getting a foot in the door at correctional facilities means finding the right gatekeeper who will provide access and support these training and capacity-building experiences. In her educational efforts with the Northwest AETC, Dr. Strick has found that this is often a slow process. | | | Going on-site and giving in-person training as a means of building relationships with correctional providers and administrators is an important way to address the limited off-site training resources available to many correctional providers. | | | Telehealth and web-based educational and consultation strategies can be useful in augmenting in-person trainings. With limited AETC resources and the remote locations of many correctional facilities, telehealth and web-based resources can be an excellent way to reach this audience and provide ongoing support. | |
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