Project LEAP (Linkage, Education, and Prevention): Integrating a Prevention Navigator to reduce Substance use and HIV risk in Minority Youth - Jefferson County, the county seat of Birmingham, Alabama, is in the top decile for HIV prevalence and incidence nationally, and African American (AA) youth are disproportionately affected. To respond to the HIV epidemic in Jefferson county, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) proposes to increase services for AA youth in Jefferson County with support from the Substance Abuse and HIV Prevention Navigator Program for Racial/Ethnic Minorities ages 13-24. The UAB team proposes Project LEAP (Linkage, Education, and Prevention), a goal-oriented approach to 1) expand access to substance use and HIV education for African American youth and their community, 2) increase HIV prevention services, and 3) integrate a Prevention Navigator who can link participants to substance use treatment and HIV services. In Jefferson County, 621 of every 100,000 residents have HIV. Of the 653 new HIV cases in Alabama in 2017, 146 were in Jefferson County. Of these, >50% occurred in persons < 30 years, and >65% were AA. By partnering with community organizations, the team proposes to promote Substance use prevention is HIV prevention; link youth to HIV, hepatitis C and substance use screening; and navigate them to services in order to reach the below goals:
GOAL 1: Expand the capacity of community partners to provide substance use and HIV education
GOAL 2: Promote Awareness of HIV Treatment and Prevention in persons who use substances
GOAL 3: Increase utilization of HIV prevention services among Youth
GOAL 4: Integrate a Prevention Navigator to increase linkage and coordination necessary for youth to obtain HIV and substance use treatment and prevention services
GOAL 5: Increase retention in care among youth with HIV and substance use disorders
The Project LEAP team will rely on a full-time Prevention Navigator who will be integrated within the community partner teams starting with the Addiction Prevention Coalition and expanding to UAB Adolescent Clinic, Beacon Recovery, and AIDS Alabama. In addition to educating youth, Project LEAP trainings and our awareness campaign will increase awareness among staff, providers, and families that substance use is an HIV risk factor. We will recruit Youth Prevention Champions to advise us and promote Project LEAP initiatives and messaging. We will develop an Advisory Board to meet quarterly, advise us on program initiatives, and review program progress. Our partners collaborate with and serve city schools, faith based communities, and criminal justice settings, which will allow our team to provide education and assessments of youth, staff and providers for the most vulnerable youth in our region. To insure the success of Project LEAP, our team includes clinician researchers with experience in HIV treatment and prevention and Addiction Medicine in addition to an experienced Program Evaluator. We will serve 500 students over the 5-year project starting with 50 in year, increasing to 100 annually in years 2 through 4, and 150 annually in year 5.
