Tag: Health Services

With advancements in HIV treatment, individuals living with HIV are now living longer, By 2030, 70% of people living with HIV (PLWH) will be ages 50 and older. But, as PLWH age they face unique challenges, particularly with cognitive health. One major concern is HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND), a form of cognitive decline more common among PLWH. This presentation will provide a brief overview of HIV care; the signs and risk factors for HAND; similarities and differences between HAND and Alzheimer’s disease; and why accurately diagnosing cognitive change in PLWH is so important.

As people living with HIV (PLWH) age, cognitive decline presents a growing yet underaddressed challenge. This presentation highlights an innovative collaboration between The Grand Rapids Red Project (TGRRP) and the Alzheimer’s Association Michigan Chapter (AAMC) to implement routine cognitive screenings within TGRRP’s HIV care programs. The initiative targets PLWH aged 44+ and those exhibiting overt cognitive impairment, aiming to bridge gaps in care complexity for aging populations.

In this presentation, AAMC will review national trends in HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) and statewide efforts to develop programming for aging PLWH through partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs). With AAMC’s support, TGRRP designed an HIV and aging pilot program featuring tailored screening tools, staff training, and referral pathways—offering replicable strategies for similar programs.

Having previously reported on clinical outcomes of Adolescents and Young Adults with HIV (AYAHIV) in the Accessing Care Early (ACE) young adult transition program, we present an update, detailing the design and implementation of this multi-dimensional program, the innovations in biomedical and care delivery interventions, as well as programmatic challenges and opportunities as we evolve into a mature transition program. This workshop will use didactics and interactive presentation, case-study, transparent panel discussion and Q&A as participants engage with the ACE program’s multidisciplinary team, including an YAHIV who “came of age” in the program.

Strengthening OBGYN capacity to integrate PrEP into routine care is critical to reducing HIV incidence and advancing health equity for Black women in Mississippi. Findings will guide a forthcoming statewide, grant-funded initiative to scale PrEP delivery in women’s health settings, supporting the Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative’s goals and addressing persistent disparities in HIV prevention access and outcomes.

Since 2018, Texas has faced a steep rise in syphilis cases particularly among marginalized groups such as Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black individuals. These findings are parallel to HIV trends in Texas. This model merges surveillance with proactive prevention and clinical coordination, targeting individuals at heightened HIV risk. Ongoing data collection on patient demographics, barriers, and facilitators will optimize implementation and elevate prevention outcomes in underserved communities.

The U.S. has approved long-acting injectable PrEP options such as cabotegravir (Apretude) and lenacapavir (Yzugo), yet major challenges remain around equitable access, demand generation, and health-system readiness. This project explores what the United States can learn from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that successfully expanded injectable contraceptives, an intervention with striking parallels to injectable PrEP.

The North Jersey Community Research Initiative (NJCRI) conducted a retrospective chart review to evaluate real-world utilization of oral and long-acting injectable PrEP (LA-Cabotegravir) among individuals accessing services between 2024 and 2025. NJCRI serves a predominantly Black and Brown, urban population in Newark, NJ, many of whom face housing instability, food insecurity, and limited access to affirming healthcare.

As part of the Hillsborough Health Equity Plan, a formative research initiative was conducted to increase the uptake of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among Black and Latinx men who have sex with men (MSM) aged 25–34 in Hillsborough County, Florida. The study explored patient and provider experiences within on-demand care settings, such as urgent care clinics and emergency departments (EDs), where opportunities for PrEP intervention are often missed.

This presentation will discuss the opportunities for implementing linkage to comprehensive services by assessing populations who are seen in the ED testing for STIs, including syphilis and HIV. We will explore the operations of identifying eligible patients, including our collaborations with the public health department, our Infectious Disease Clinic, and our Title V Clinic. We will highlight what is going well and discuss areas of improvement.
This presentation will also review the successes and challenges of launching a rapid PrEP program in an ED setting.

This presentation will highlight how to build a successful HIV testing program in the community. These are not abstract methods, but concrete steps to provide a clear plan on creating an HIV testing program that will ensure more people will have access to free, rapid testing.