ABSTRACT
Individuals diagnosed and living with HIV who are out of care or who have persistent viremia are at risk for poor health outcomes and are estimated to account for two-thirds of all new HIV infections. As part of a six-state demonstration project to improve access to care for hard-to-reach populations, Wisconsin developed an HIV-specific patient navigation program to improve engagement in HIV care and viral suppression for populations at risk for poor HIV care outcomes. Patient navigators worked with individuals who were out of HIV medical care or were at risk of falling out of care over nine months to identify and address barriers to care. This manuscript describes the patient navigation program and rationale, and lessons learned that should be considered by sites developing similar programs.
Subject(s)
Continuity of Patient Care/organization & administration , HIV Infections/epidemiology , Patient Acceptance of Health Care/statistics & numerical data , Patient Navigation/methods , Anti-HIV Agents , HIV Infections/drug therapy , Humans , Pilot Projects , Program Development , United StatesABSTRACT
The Health Resources and Services Administration Special Projects of National Significance launched the Systems Linkage and Access to Care for Populations at High Risk of HIV Infection Initiative in 2011. Six state departments of health were funded to utilize a modified Learning Collaborative model to develop and/or adapt HIV testing, linkage to care and retention in care system-level interventions. More than 60 Learning Sessions were held over the course of the Learning Collaborative. A total of 22 unique interventions were tested with 18 interventions selected and scaled up. All interventions were created to impact services at a systems level, with standardized protocols developed to ensure fidelity. Our findings provide key lessons and present considerations for replication for use of a modified Learning Collaborative to achieve state-level systems change.
