Expand capacity to provide out-of-care line lists to community-based non-medical providers for the purpose of promoting engagement and retention in medical care Improve capacity for dissemination of local (city, neighborhood) disease surveillance data to inform local-level disease response, in collaboration with local public health agencies Develop capacity for HIV providers to coordinate with the Massachusetts HIV/AIDS Surveillance Program to verify engagement in care Expand implementation of Electronic Health Record Support for Public Health (ESPnet) to directly query electronic medical records to monitor HIV, STD, and viral hepatitis diagnosis, and improve the quality and timeliness of care and treatment services Improve provider capacity to use HIV surveillance and Electronic Medical Record (EMR) data to improve the delivery of HIV prevention and care services. OF The integration of prevention and care services has long been identified as top priority for HIV service programs. Overwhelmingly, participants highlighted the need for additional flexibility across prevention and care funding streams to meet the needs of both HIV+ and at-risk populations. Suggested strategies include: Streamline funding for prevention and care services into a single contract procurement Support contractual scopes of service that are responsive to social determinants of health for individuals both living with and at risk for HIV infection Expand allowable service scopes to include housing search, advocacy, and transitional or permanent placement services for persons at high risk for HIV infection, who are homeless or unstably housed Provide flexibility for medical and non-medical providers to leverage federal and state funds across prevention and care funding streams Cross-train prevention and medical case management staff to provide continuous levels of care, regardless of funding source(s) or HIV status of clients served Develop an integrated set of prevention and care quality monitoring standards Include support for certified Community Health Workers (CHWs) as members of integrated HIV prevention and care teams as a component of service contracts HIV The Massachusetts HIV care continuum is an important tool to assess the impact of publicly funded HIV/AIDS prevention and care services. Data from the Massachusetts HIV care continuum indicates higher levels of engagement in care, retention in care, and viral suppression when compared to nationwide data; yet disparities persist by race/ethnicity, age, gender, and exposure mode. Closing the remaining gaps along the continuum of care, especially for populations experiencing lower rates of viral suppression and retention in care, was highlighted as a priority. Additional service needs to improve health outcomes were identified, including:
Expand capacity to provide out-of-care line lists to community-based non-medical providers for the purpose of promoting engagement and retention in medical care Improve capacity for dissemination of local (city, neighborhood) disease surveillance data to inform local-level disease response, in collaboration with local public health agencies Develop capacity for HIV providers to coordinate with the Massachusetts HIV/AIDS Surveillance Program to verify engagement in care Expand implementation of Electronic Health Record Support for Public Health (ESPnet) to directly query electronic medical records to monitor HIV, STD, and viral hepatitis diagnosis, and improve the quality and timeliness of care and treatment services Improve provider capacity to use HIV surveillance and Electronic Medical Record (EMR) data to improve the delivery of HIV prevention and care services. OF The integration of prevention and care services has long been identified as top priority for HIV service programs. Overwhelmingly, participants highlighted the need for additional flexibility across prevention and care funding streams to meet the needs of both HIV+ and at-risk populations. Suggested strategies include: Streamline funding for prevention and care services into a single contract procurement Support contractual scopes of service that are responsive to social determinants of health for individuals both living with and at risk for HIV infection Expand allowable service scopes to include housing search, advocacy, and transitional or permanent placement services for persons at high risk for HIV infection, who are homeless or unstably housed Provide flexibility for medical and non-medical providers to leverage federal and state funds across prevention and care funding streams Cross-train prevention and medical case management staff to provide continuous levels of care, regardless of funding source(s) or HIV status of clients served Develop an integrated set of prevention and care quality monitoring standards Include support for certified Community Health Workers (CHWs) as members of integrated HIV prevention and care teams as a component of service contracts HIV The Massachusetts HIV care continuum is an important tool to assess the impact of publicly funded HIV/AIDS prevention and care services. Data from the Massachusetts HIV care continuum indicates higher levels of engagement in care, retention in care, and viral suppression when compared to nationwide data; yet disparities persist by race/ethnicity, age, gender, and exposure mode. Closing the remaining gaps along the continuum of care, especially for populations experiencing lower rates of viral suppression and retention in care, was highlighted as a priority. Additional service needs to improve health outcomes were identified, including: