National Monkeypox Response – Closing Day at USCHA

Cross-posted from HIV.gov

On the closing day of the 2022 US Conference on HIV/AIDS (USCHA) in Puerto Rico, the final plenary session focused on the response to the current monkeypox outbreak. On behalf of HIV.gov, Timothy P. Harrison, Ph.D., Principal Deputy Director for the Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy, spoke with Dr. Demetre C. Daskalakis, White House National Monkeypox Response Deputy Coordinator, about the same topic.

The final session of the conference was a plenary focused on the national response to monkeypox, which is having a disproportionate impact on people with and experiencing risk for HIV. The session featured presenters from CDC, HRSA’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, and representatives from a health department and community-based organizations in New York, Los Angeles, and Boston discussing their agencies’ approaches to addressing the monkeypox outbreak. Dr. Demetre Daskalakis underscored that a syndemic approach to the response to monkeypox is essential given both the common risk factors and populations affected by HIV, STIs, and monkeypox. He applauded and encouraged the important roles the HIV community has played and will continue to play in the monkeypox response. He highlighted opportunities to connect those getting the monkeypox vaccine or treatment with HIV testing and PrEP or HIV treatment, vital actions to end both the monkeypox outbreak and HIV epidemic equitably across all populations. (Follow HIV.gov’s Monkeypox page for more information and resources.)

Also featured in the closing session was a presentation of several panels of the National AIDS Memorial quilt and an invitation to participate in the new Change the Pattern initiative highlighting Black and Latino lives lost to HIV.

USCHA is the largest HIV-related gathering in the United States, bringing together thousands of participants from all segments of the HIV community. Organized by NMAC, the 2022 conference was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from October 8-11 with over 3,000 participants registered. The conference featured over 120 institutes, workshops, and posters addressing issues in biomedical HIV prevention, aging, service delivery, and telehealth, prioritizing the issues of people with HIV and the next steps in ending the epidemic.

Now Hiring! 2 New Positions Open with the Training & Health Equity Collaborative

The Training & Health Equity Collaborative is Hiring for 2 New Positions!

THEC LogoThe Training & Health Equity (THE) Collaborative provides capacity building, technical assistance, and training to healthcare organizations in the West region. Based out of the UCSF Department of Family & Community Medicine, THE Collaborative’s programs include the Pacific AIDS Education and Training Center, Alameda County Training Academy, and now Gilead Sciences’ Age Positively program. Learn more about THE Collaborative and check out open positions below!

Training Manager

The Training & Health Equity Collaborative

The Training & Health Equity Collaborative is hiring for a capacity-building Training Manager! Support the integration of a complex county-wide social service program, develop new provider community engagement trainings, and improve outcomes for Medi-Cal recipients.

Alameda County Training Academy Program Coordinator

The Training & Health Equity Collaborative

Interested in flexing your project coordination and administrative abilities with a team engaged in training the health and social services workforce in Alameda County? Join the Training & Health Equity Collaborative! THE Collaborative is now hiring for Alameda County Training Academy Program Coordinator. Learn more your possible role in our mission to increase equitable and accessible healthcare.

Watch Highlights from the Opening Day at USCHA 2022

Cross-posted from HIV.gov

The 2022 US Conference on HIV/AIDS (USCHA) opened in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Saturday, October 8. The opening plenary session put the spotlight on the HIV response in Puerto Rico, and HIV.gov spoke with Lieutenant Alberto Pina, the PACE Deputy Director in Los Angeles, about his reflections on USCHA.

Lieutenant Pina was moved by the energy and excitement of the session, and he also discussed the significance of hosting the conference in San Juan.

The opening plenary highlighted HIV in Puerto Rico and Latinx communities. Presenters included doctors who have been in the HIV field since the earliest days of the epidemic and who have treated people with HIV on the island; a lawyer fighting against stigma and discrimination; and a clinician who worked to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Puerto Rico in 1994, many years before other countries did the same. Several people with HIV passionately shared their personal experiences of living with the virus and working to educate others in their communities about HIV prevention and treatment services, including PrEP. Presenters also discussed the current state of HIV, including successes and challenges of working toward ending the HIV epidemic in Puerto Rico, which  is one of the 57 priority areas for the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. initiative.

The USCHA is the largest HIV-related gathering in the United States, bringing together thousands of participants from all segments of the HIV community. Organized by NMAC, the 2022 conference is being held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from October 8-11 with more than 3,000 participants registered. The conference features over 120 institutes, workshops, and posters addressing issues in biomedical HIV prevention, aging, service delivery, and telehealth, prioritizing the issues of people with HIV and the next steps in ending the epidemic.

Follow HIV.gov on FacebookTwitter, and Instagram for more conference updates.

National Latinx AIDS Awareness Day #NLAAD (October 15, 2022)

NLAAD GraphicOctober 15 is National Latinx AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD), which was first observed in 2003 by the Hispanic Federation and the Latino Commission on AIDS. NLAAD is an opportunity to help address the disproportionate impact of HIV on Hispanic/Latinx communities, promote HIV testing, and stop HIV stigma.

Let’s take a deeper look at HIV among Hispanic/Latinx People:

HIV has a disproportionate impact on the Hispanic/Latinx population. In 2020, Hispanic/Latinx people represented 27% of new HIV diagnosesdespite making up only 19% of the U.S. population. The Hispanic/Latinx community faces unique cultural and societal challenges in HIV prevention, treatment, and care, including language barriers and mistrust of the health care system.

In 2021, 23% of new HIV diagnoses among Hispanic/Latinx people were diagnosed late, meaning those individuals were diagnosed with stage 3 HIV (AIDS) within 3 months of their initial HIV diagnosis. In the same year, only an estimated 45% of Hispanic/Latinx individuals reported ever being tested for HIV.

AIDSVu Infographic

Cross-posted from AIDSVu

NLAAD Campaign: You Choose!

NLAAD’s campaign brings together Hispanic/Latinx communities and service providers, and organizations providing services to Hispanic/Latinx throughout the U.S. and territories under one theme. This year’s theme is “You Choose!” to create awareness about choosing HIV medication options better suited to each individual.

NLAAD Campaign

Resources

Dr. Sonya Arreola on Health Inequities Among Hispanic/Latinx Populations

Dr. Sonya Arreola, PhD, MPH is the director of Arreola Research and serves as a consulting faculty/mentor in the Visiting Professors Program for University of California San Francisco’s Department of Medicine and Prevention Science.

Webinars

HIV Vaccine Research Updates and Latinx Engagement

The presentation focuses on HIV vaccine, how they are designed, how vaccine research trials are conducted and the importance of engaging Latinx.

Presenter:
Jorge Benitez, Community Engagement Coordinator, Columbia Research Unit

Facilitated Live on: October 14, 2022

Social Determinants of Health and HIV in Latinx and Communities of Color

This webinar will address the intersection of the social determinants of health and their impact on HIV among the Latinx community as well as on communities of color in general – and the disparate impact on health equity and long-term health outcomes among medically underserved populations

Presenter:
Gregorio Millett, MPH,
amfAR – The foundation For AIDS Research

Facilitated Live on: October 6, 2020