The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #44164

R.M. Stineman¹, Mari Ross-Russell, MHS¹, Laureen Lopez, PhD, RD¹, and M. Ann Ricksecker, MPH². (1) City of Philadelphia, Office of HIV Planning, 1321 Arch Street, 12th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19107, 215-546-2013, stineman@critpath.org, (2) PA/Mid-Atlantic AIDS ETC, Health Federation of Philadelphia, 1211 Chestnut Street, Suite 700, Philadelphia, PA 19107

Every Eligible Metropolitan Area (EMA) funded by Title I of the Ryan White CARE Act is expected, on an annual basis, to (1) conduct needs assessments, (2) prioritize services and allocate financial resources, and (3) conduct quality management of services. At the same time, EMAs are expected to maintain longer-range goals and objectives aimed at identifying people with HIV who are not in care and eliminating disparities for historically underserved populations.

This EMA has many challenges to face: serving a multi-jurisdictional area of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, only one of which has HIV reporting; providing services to both highly urban and remote rural areas; addressing an epidemic overwhelmingly associated with substance users and predominated by traditionally underserved racial/ethnic minority men-who-have-sex-with-men.

To maximize its ability to both meet federal expectations and provide an optimal continuum of care for its constituents, Philadelphia utilizes a continuous community-based comprehensive planning model that (1) is driven by results of needs assessments and local epidemiological trends; (2) leads to evidence-based priorities, resource allocations, and service delivery implementation plans; and (3) both informs and is informed by the EMA’s nationally-recognized program of continuous quality improvement (CQI).

The multi-year plan articulates several broad goals, each accompanied by specific, measurable objectives, action steps, timeframes, persons responsible, and monitoring/evaluation criteria. The objectives are incorporated into the Council’s annual priority-setting/allocations processes, and then into the Grantee’s implementation plan. Results of CQI analyses feed directly back into the comprehensive plan as the Planning Council revises and extends the plan each year.

Learning Objectives:

• • Describe phases and elements of Philadelphia's comprehensive planning process.
  • Recognize ways in which the comprehensive plan informs annual decision-making about services and resource allocation.
  • Identify direct linkages between the comprehensive plan and improvements in the care continuum.

Keywords: Community Health Planning, HIV/AIDS

Related Web page: www.hivphilly.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.