BACKGROUND: Of all racial and ethnic groups in the US, HIV/AIDS has hit the African-American community the hardest. African-Americans make up approximately 13% of the US population, but account for 49% of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses (CDC HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report 2005). This rate is nearly 10 times that of whites and nearly 3 times that of Hispanics (Ibid.). Hispanics account for approximately 20% of AIDS cases despite also comprising only about 13% of the population (CDC, 2000 US Census).
Chicago statistics follow these national trends. Most individuals living with HIV/AIDS in Illinois live in the Chicago Metropolitan Area, which, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), totals over 20,000 persons (CDPH, 2005-2006). People of color, who comprise 69% of Chicago?s population and number slightly more than 1 million persons, account for 81% of Chicago?s new AIDS diagnoses and 77% of its new HIV diagnoses (Ibid.). In 2005, the AIDS incidence rate for blacks in Chicago was more than double that of whites and Latinos/as (Ibid.). Cognizant of these statistics, Howard Brown, South Side Help Center, and Haymarket Center are seeking to use their combined expertise to provide technical assistance and capacity development to community-based minority-serving organizations in Chicago.
OBJECTIVES: The collaborative partners of Howard Brown Health Center (HBHC), South Side Help Center (SSHC), and Haymarket Center have identified specific process, outcome, and impact objectives to be met at the end of the grant?s initial fiscal year.
PROGRAM PLAN: Agency partners will carry out this project by leveraging staff and organizational expertise to accomplish the objectives related to the four primary CTA/CD activities: training and development, administrative technical assistance, programmatic technical assistance, and implementation of a city/county-wide referral network to enhance HIV/AIDS prevention, substance use counseling, and primary care service integrat