The Comprehensive High Impact HIV Prevention Project will expand HIV testing and identification of HIV diagnosis, linkage and retention of HIV medical, essential, and supportive care, access to PrEP/nPEP, distribution of condoms, and collaborative efforts with partner organizations including state and county health departments to help reduce morbidity and mortality associated with HIV/AIDS for African American Men Who Sex with Men (MSM) and their partners. While the project will serve African American MSM and their partners throughout Atlanta MSA, Zip Codes 30307, 30308, 30309, 30314, and 30318 within the city of Atlanta will be targeted due to high levels of need and low levels of service access and use. Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition (AHRC) is an HIV, HCV, STI and substance use prevention organization which provides outreach, advocacy, education, testing, linkage, treatment, training, and more to underserved and stigmatized communities. AHRC has strong ties to the populations of focus and a strong historical presence in the targeted geographic area.
This project will support increased outreach capacity targeting African American MSM and their partners in areas of Atlanta with health indicators pointing to high-risk drug use and sexual behavior. Effective outreach conducted via mobile health unit will connect with members of the target population to provide them with comprehensive evidence-based HIV prevention services. These wide-ranging services are based on a combination of evidence-based interventions: community PROMISE.
For those contacted through outreach efforts who choose to access HIV medical care, Partner, essential, and support services, the collaboration will provide the enhanced treatment including comprehensive case management, linkage, treatment, and after-care follow-up. These additional services will improve access and retention by addressing obstacles to medical care, meeting independent living and economic needs, and providing other HIV-related services. Outreach expansion efforts will serve approximately 3,000 members of the target population over the five-year life of this project; HIV testing and condom distribution to 2,500 individuals, HCV/STI screening and treatment to 500 individuals, linkage to treatment, medication adherence, and partner services to 60 new and 50 previous HIV positive persons; and EBIs to 12 HIV-positive persons and 80 high risk negative persons; and linkage to essential and supportive services to 100 HIV positive persons and 500 high risk negative persons, and linkage to PrEP/nPEP to 500 high risk negative persons over the five-year period of the grant. Finally, AHRC will collaborate in cluster identification, HIV testing, PrEP accessibility, and condom distribution with state and county health departments through 16 meetings over the 5-year course of this project.