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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Phyllis Jones, National AIDS Fund, 729 15th Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington, DC 20005, (202) 408-4848, pjones@aidsfund.org

Women's Voices RISE Program is a community-based HIV prevention collaboration targeting high risk black women. Originally funded to reduce HIV transmission and increase access to HIV counseling and testing through the implementation of the science-based prevention program, Community Promise, Women's Voices RISE has changed its program plan based on lessons learned from the replication experience.

Lessons learned: 1. While Community PROMISE has been replicated in several settings, high risk women in Boston were unable to accept the program due to overwhelming trust issues. The target population for this program included low income women, women addicted to alcohol and/or drugs, and women who exchange sex for money or drugs. Community PROMISE requires participation of the target population and disclosure of their personal information and stories. High risk women in Boston refused to disclose personal stories . Women reported reluctance to work with peers due to a fear of substance use relapse or other negative behavioral relapse. 2. Women's Voices RISE alsoincludes a large AIDS services organization (over 70 staff, $9M budget) and one very small consumer-led organization (under 10 staff, less than $500K budget). There are inherent challenges when forming collaborations between two organizations, including size, scope, culture and history of organizations. Recommendations: Adapting science based proven interventions requires the ability to identify disconnects between the intervention and targeted populations and develop alternative strategies that accommodate the needs of targeted groups. Before the start of any collaboration, proper planning and training must be taken into consideration before the project begins. b

Learning Objectives: At the end of the session, participants in this session will be able to

• Identify the challenges inherent in replicating proven effective HIV prevention programs in communities
• Recognize the steps needed in order to create effective collaboration between two community-based organizations

Keywords: Women and HIV/AIDS, Interventions

Related Web page: www.aidsfund.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation