It’s not all hype: California’s HIV intervention enhancement project (HIEP) moves HIV prevention providers toward evidence-based interventions


Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

3244.0: Monday, December 12, 2005 - Board 8

Abstract #110258

Nancy Berman Lees, PhD¹, Shanna Starke-Livermore, CHES¹, Jeffrey T. Bernstein, MS², Kevin D. Sitter, MSW MPH¹, and Steven R. Truax, PhD¹. (1) Office of AIDS, California Department of Health Services, MS 7700 P.O. Box 997426, Sacramento, CA 95899-7426, (916) 449-5538, Nancy.B.Lees@kp.org, (2) California Technical Assistance Program, UCSF Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, 74 New Montgomery, Suite 600, San Francisco, CA 94105

Issues: Evidence demonstrates that many HIV prevention program providers in our state use health education rather than targeted, proven behavioral interventions; and want hands-on assistance identifying local risk groups and selecting, tailoring and implementing appropriate interventions.

Description: A multidisciplinary group of HIV prevention specialists from a state funded technical assistance project, a University AIDS prevention research organization, an STD prevention training center, and the State Office of AIDS (OA) formed the HIV Intervention Enhancement Project (HIEP) workgroup to support HIV prevention providers' move toward targeted, evidence-based interventions. HIEP developed a multifaceted Program Enhancement Plan (PEP) to supply providers with ready access to practical information about prevention interventions and assistance implementing them. PEP has five components: 1) providing specialized field staff, 2) reorganizing OA--focusing resources, 3) identifying appropriate interventions/funding High Risk Initiatives to fill gaps, 4) developing internet-based training, 5) designing an interactive website for providers to review and identify appropriate interventions for local needs. The comprehensive program maximizes available resources to create and identify effective interventions, develops resources to access them, and provides technical assistance and training in their implementation.

Lessons Learned: Providing needed information to providers in an accessable, user-friendly format with limited fiscal resources is challenging. Accruing targeted, appropriate interventions and their curricula that cover the necessary risk populations is a long, difficult process and will continue for some time.

Recommendations: Improving HIV prevention quality, and moving providers toward using evidence based interventions, depends on making adequate, usable resources available to providers.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

1. Recognize the difficulties California HIV prevention providers experience when trying to provide appropriate interventions.
2. Identify the challenges encountered and solutions applied when attempting to create a comprehensive program to maximize available resources that help providers create and identify effective interventions.
3. Describe the 5 step plan devised to assist providers with movement to evidence based interventions.

Keywords: HIV Interventions, Evidence Based Practice

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

HIV/AIDS: Care and Prevention across Diverse Settings

The 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition (December 10-14, 2005) of APHA