Chicago MAI-HR Program - Summary. Alliance Care 360 (AC360) is proposing The Caring Steps linkage and substance misuse navigation model designed to provide Coordinated, caring, and compassionate SUD Treatment, community Engagement and Peer driven Strategies to achieve healthy recovery outcomes (Caring STEPS), a program to increase engagement in care for racial and ethnic medically underserved individuals with SUDs and/or COD who are at risk for or with HIV in south and west Chicago and Suburban Cook County, IL. AC360 will serve 600 unduplicated individuals annually. Project name. Caring STEPS Populations to be served. The populations of focus (POF) will be racial and ethnic medically underserved individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs) and/or co- occurring SUDs and mental health conditions (COD) who are at risk for or with HIV; AC360 will primarily target persons of color, including high-risk and HIV positive youth adult and aging African American, Latinx and Asian Pacific Islander MSM (South-East region), transgender men and women and non-binary populations. The geographic catchment area where services will be delivered is high prevalence, underserved community neighborhood areas of south and west Chicago and Suburban Cook County. Strategies/interventions. Program activities will include: 1) SUD/COD treatment and recovery support services; 2) HIV rapid testing and on-site HIV testing; 3) Linkage to confirmatory testing; 4) case management, referral/linkages to follow-up care, and treatment for all clients who have a preliminary positive HIV and confirmatory HIV test results; 5) case management, referral/linkage to PrEP services for individuals who screen negative for HIV but are at increased risk of becoming infected with HIV; 6) education, case management, referral/linkage to non-Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (nPEP) services for individuals who are at increased risk of exposure to HIV through exposure; 7) expand MOAs with primary HIV treatment and care providers; 8) screen and assess clients for the presence of CODs; 9) test all clients who are considered to be at risk for viral Hepatitis (B and C) on-site and during mobile outreach; 10) develop a continuous outreach strategy; 11) hire staff that represent the population being served; 12) ensure translate tools and resources are available; and 13) enhance access to services for all groups, AC360 will also implement the following EBPs: Motivational Interviewing (MI), Adapted Relapse Prevention Therapy, Cognitive Behavior Therapy with Behavioral Activation and Contingency Management (CM). Project goals and measurable objectives. The program’s goal is to increase engagement in care for racial and ethnic medically underserved individuals with SUDs and/or COD who are at risk for or with HIV. Objectives for the proposed program include: 1) Conduct outreach and recruitment activities, reaching up to 1,500 persons from the POF per year: 2) Conduct HIV testing for 600 persons from the POF per year; 3) Conduct hepatitis B and C testing for 300 persons from the POF per year; 4) Provide linkage to and retention in care for at least 95% of clients testing positive for HIV per year; 5) Provide case management, education and referral for 95% of clients testing positive for HIV per year; 6) Provide education, case management, referral/linkage to PrEP services to 75% of high-risk HIV negative persons from the POF per year; 7) Provide education, case management, referral/linkage to nPEP services to 75% of high-risk HIV negative persons from the POF per year; 8) Screen and assess 400 persons from the POF for COD per year; 9) Provide SUD/COD treatment and recovery support services to 90% of persons from the POF screening positive for SUD/COD per year; and 10) Provide evidence-based programming for at least 100 program participants per year.
