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Regional Training Center

Summary: This project provides capacity building to nonclinical HIV service providers in New York State to help improve service outcomes in all aspects of HIV care, with particular attention to underserved populations.

Opportunity: Although New York has been one of the most successful states in the nation in providing HIV services, there are still a number of challenges that need to be addressed to end the HIV epidemic. Many people with HIV whose infection is undiagnosed are not effectively reached by clinical services. Nonclinical providers (primarily at community-based organizations) can play a central role in improving HIV outcomes—specifically in the areas of linkage and retention to care, community outreach, and the identification of and response to new clusters of HIV infections. CAI’s Regional Training Center (RTC) provides the nonclinical workforce with capacity-building resources that support them in being part of the collective efforts to end the epidemic.

Initiative: CAI’s RTC serves the Mid-Hudson and New York City areas of the state and delivers approximately 50 training programs to 2,000 participants from 25 organizations each year. The RTC is focused on building the capacity of nonclinical providers to promote innovative HIV testing services that engage those who are overlooked by current testing options and work to break down silos between clinical and nonclinical providers. More specifically, the RTC is enabling nonclinical providers to provide targeted community-based outreach for HIV testing; provide HIV testing in an array of community venues; and promote and enable uptake of HIV self-testing. In support of these activities, the RTC helps nonclinical providers train, sustain, and fully integrate the work of peers, client navigators, and retention specialists to help nonclinical providers reconnect with people with HIV who previously initiated services but have since fallen out of care. All RTC activities are geared toward reducing HIV disparities among populations with unmet need, such as trans populations, sex workers, and homeless youth. This program builds on CAI’s decades-long relationship with the New York State Department of Health, including its AIDS Institute.

Impact: The RTC has become a cornerstone of New York State’s HIV response. From 2014-2019, we trained nearly 7,000 participants on topics including cultural competency, health literacy, and HIV screening. CAI has also led special projects that advanced innovative approaches to addressing HIV disparities. The Social Network Strategy to Recruit Minority Patients to NY’s Health Plan Marketplace trained over 325 community members to serve as recruiters who successfully facilitated enrollment of hundreds of people of color with HIV in health insurance. This next phase of the RTC will continue to train the nonclinical HIV workforce to accelerate progress in reducing new infections toward the goal of ending the epidemic.

Project funder and partner: New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute.

Project contact: Catherine Simmons, Project Manager: rtc.contact@dev.caiglobal.org.

Safe Sex During COVID-19

This 1-hour webinar outlines the rationale and best practices for talking to clients about how they can protect themselves and minimize their risk of Covid-19 transmission.
As a result of this training, participants will be able to:

  • Recall accurate information about sex and COVID-19
  • Recall best practices for Talking to Clients About COVID-19
  • Promote how to minimize the risks of COVID-19 during sexual activities using our trauma-informed skills.
  • Identify next steps and support.

Target Audience

All health and human service providers.

Role of Non-Clinicians in Promoting PREP

Pre-exposure prophylaxis is an important addition to the HIV prevention toolbox, especially for individuals at highest risk of acquiring HIV. This 2-hour webinar will prepare non-clinical health and human services providers to educate their communities about PrEP, work with clinical providers to expand access to PrEP and provide support to clients who are taking PrEP.

As a result of this training, participants will be able to:

  • Deliver culturally relevant educational messages about PrEP to clients who may benefit from this intervention
  • Discuss the efficacy of PrEP in terms that clients can understand;
  • Refer clients to a host of NYS, NYC, national and local resources regarding PrEP including the PrEP/PEP Voluntary Provider Directory
  • Identify resources to assist clients with reimbursement for PrEP medication, medical appointments, HIV/STD testing and other prevention tools such as condoms, sterile syringes, etc.
  • Integrate messages about PrEP into HIV/STD testing and other prevention services offered by the organization
  • Assist clients on PrEP with behavioral counseling and support daily adherence to the medication

Target Audience

The principal target audience is non-clinical health and human services staff who:

  • Are involved in offering HIV testing, harm reduction counseling, prevention services, community outreach or adherence support
  • Work with individuals at high risk for HIV who have an opportunity to provide education or support regarding PrEP
  • Who work in clinical settings who may have an opportunity to provide education or support around PrEP
  • Peer Workers who work with people at risk with HIV and STDs

Meeting and Working with Clients Remotely

This 90-minute webinar will assist participants in building knowledge and skills to more effectively deliver services to clients remotely.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Describe the benefits and challenges of meeting with clients remotely,
  • List at least 2 resources for meeting with clients remotely, and
  • Describe at least 3 key considerations for meeting with clients remotely

Target Audience

Non-medical human service providers, including peers and peer workers, who meet with and/or work with clients remotely.

Health Literacy in HIV, STI, and Viral Hepatitis Care

This 2-hour webinar will provide health and human services providers an overview of health literacy and give participants the opportunity to develop skills utilizing health literacy universal precautions to clearly communicate with patients or clients. At completion of this training, participants will be able to apply two health literacy strategies, plain language and teach back method, into their work.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Define health literacy, the health literacy disconnect in healthcare, and how this affects patients and the public;
  • Learn about two health literacy universal precautions, plain language and teach back method, to improve communication and patient understanding;
  • Develop plain language and teach back facilitation skills; and
  • Identify common concerns and challenges associated with incorporating plain language and teach back method with all patients.

Target Audience

This training is for health and human service providers and peer workers.

Hepatitis C Prevention for LGB and TGNC Individuals and Communities

This 2 -hour webinar will review the basic information about hepatitis C that health and human service providers should discuss with program participants who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual (LGB) or Transgender/Gender Non-Conforming (TGNC). This webinar will explore the practices that may place LGB and TGNC people at risk for HCV transmission and identify harm reduction strategies to reduce their risk. Screening recommendations and key considerations for HCV care and treatment in LGB and TGNC clients will be addressed.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Review basic information about HCV prevention, transmission, screening, diagnosis, care and treatment
  • Explore HCV risk and identify harm reduction options for LGB and TGNC health
  • Discuss the benefits of HCV testing and connection to care.
  • Identify HCV prevention messages using Harm Reduction to educate LGB and TGNC clients
  • Address common concerns that LGB and TGN clients may have regarding HCV care and treatment

Target Audience

All health and human service providers, including peer workers.

HCV Treatment Update for Health and Human Services Providers

This 2 -hour webinar will describe the role of non-clinical health and human services providers in supporting clients living with chronic hepatitis C as they consider starting hepatitis C treatment. Participants will become familiar with current guidelines regarding treatment, issues relating to treatment access, and patient assistance resources.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Describe the recent progress in treatment options for patients living with hepatitis C (shorter duration, fewer side effects, better health outcomes)
  • Describe the importance of engaging in primary care, regardless of the clients intent to undergo treatment
  • Identify strategies to support clients as they prepare for and engage in HCV treatment
  • Define sustained virologic response (SVR)
  • Discuss strategies to address the risk of reinfection with clients who achieve SVR

Target Audience

All health and human service providers.

Implementing a Sex-positive Approach

This webinar series will prepare non-physician health and human services providers with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to employ a non-judgmental, sex positive approach during all interactions with clients. The course will be delivered in six parts over three days for a total of 13.0 hours of training.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Demonstrate comfort talking about sexual health, sexual behavior, and sexual pleasure
  • Demonstrate comfort using either medical terms or slang terms for different sexual behaviors and parts of human genitalia
  • Be familiar with the practice of using substances to enhance sexual pleasure
  • Discuss the risk of HIV transmission during different sexual behaviors and present a range of harm reduction options
  • Share client-centered, culturally appropriate messages about HIV treatment as prevention and U=U
  • Explain PrEP as an empowering, sex-positive biomedical intervention for HIV prevention without using scare tactics
  • Explain birth control/contraceptive options with clients in a culturally responsive manner
  • Use open-ended questions when asking clients about their sexual desires and experiences, and actively listen to responses
  • Use affirming language around gender identify, gender expression, sexuality and sexual orientation

Target audience

Non-physician health and human services providers who work with clients/patients at risk for HIV or STIs, including prevention specialists, PrEP specialists, peer workers, case managers, care managers and coordinators, social workers, client services staff.

Trauma and Its Impact on Clients with HIV/STIs/HCV

This one-hour webinar will introduce providers to trauma and the impact on clients with HIV/STIs/HCV. This course will review the definition of trauma and trauma informed care.

At the end of this training, participants will be able to:

  • Define trauma and list examples of trauma that clients with HIV/STIs/HCV encounter
  • Describe the ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) Study and its importance to providers
  • Define trauma informed care
  • List at least 5 triggers that may re-traumatize clients with HIV/STIs/HCV

Target Audience

All non-physician health and human service providers who work with people living with HIV/STIs/HCV.

Regional Training Center Training Calendar

You must have an account with the NYS Department of Health AIDS Institute and be logged in to learn more about and register for these trainings.

If you do not have an account, you can quickly create an account at the AIDS Institute site and then return to this page to see all trainings.

This four-hour training (consisting of two, 2-hour webinars) will help participants identify good practices for conducting screening for social determinants of health (SDOH) in a client-centered, affirming manner. Participants will learn about available screening tools, including a standardized AIDS Institute SDOH screening tool. The training will share strategies for explaining the importance of SDOH screening to clients, engaging them in determining their own priorities, and good practices for making referrals to other resources and services to address unmet needs.

As a result of this training, non-physician health, and human service providers will be able to:

  • Explain to clients the importance of screening for Social Determinants of Health.
  • Identify best practices for conducting Social Determinants of Health screening in a client-centered, affirming manner.
  • Conduct Social Determinants of Health screening in a manner that builds trust and rapport.
  • Engage the client in the process of prioritizing and addressing unmet needs.
  • Identify best practices for connecting clients to resources and services to address their unmet needs.

Target audience

Non-physician health and human service providers who work with clients/patients who are living with, or are at risk for, HIV, HCV, or STIs, are LGBT/GNC, or who use substances, including social workers, nurses, care coordinators, case managers, peer workers, prevention specialists, PrEP specialists, client services staff, and others.

This two-hour webinar will provide health and human services providers an overview of health literacy and give participants the opportunity to develop skills utilizing health literacy universal precautions to clearly communicate with patients or clients. At completion of this training, participants will be able to apply two health literacy strategies, plain language and teach back method, into their work.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Define health literacy, the health literacy disconnect in healthcare, and how this affects patients and the public
  • Learn about two health literacy universal precautions, plain language and teach back method, to improve communication and patient understanding
  • Develop plain language and teach back facilitation skills
  • Identify common concerns and challenges associated with incorporating plain language and teach back method with all patients

Target Audience

Health and human service providers and peer workers.

Register for an upcoming training

June 9, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.

HCV Treatment Update for Health and Human Services Providers (webinar)

This two-hour webinar will describe the role of non-clinical health and human services providers in supporting clients living with chronic hepatitis C as they consider starting hepatitis C treatment. Participants will become familiar with current guidelines regarding treatment, issues relating to treatment access, and patient assistance resources.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Describe the recent progress in treatment options for patients living with hepatitis C (shorter duration, fewer side effects, better health outcomes)
  • Describe the importance of engaging in primary care, regardless of the client’s intent to undergo treatment
  • Identify strategies to support clients as they prepare for and engage in HCV treatment
  • Define sustained virologic response (SVR)
  • Discuss strategies to address the risk of reinfection with clients who achieve SVR

Target audience

All health and human service providers.

This two-hour webinar will review the basic information about hepatitis C that health and human service providers should discuss with program participants who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual (LGB) or Transgender/Gender Non-Conforming (TGNC). This webinar will explore the practices that may place LGB and TGNC people at risk for HCV transmission and identify harm reduction strategies to reduce their risk. Screening recommendations and key considerations for HCV care and treatment in LGB and TGNC clients will be addressed.

As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Review basic information about HCV prevention, transmission, screening, diagnosis, care and treatment
  • Explore HCV risk and identify harm reduction options for LGB and TGNC health
  • Discuss the benefits of HCV testing and connection to care
  • Identify HCV prevention messages using harm reduction to educate LGB and TGNC clients
  • Address common concerns that LGB and TGN clients may have regarding HCV care and treatment

Target audience

All health and human service providers, including peer workers.

This two-part webinar series will provide participants with an opportunity to practice key skills related to offering HIV testing services.

As a result of this training, participants will be able to:

  • Recall the need and requirements for HIV testing
  • Recall the benefits of treatment as prevention, PrEP, and PEP
  • Deliver a non-reactive, preliminary positive, and confirmed positive HIV test result
  • Conduct the NYS domestic violence screening protocol and steps for partner notification

Target audience

Any individual involved in delivering HIV testing services, including peer workers.

Prerequisite

Knowledge of basic HIV/AIDS information and attendance at “HIV Testing in NYS: Online Training” or equivalent.

Register for an upcoming training

June 24, 2023, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. eastern time

HIV Non-Clinical logoCourse Description

HIV Testing in Nonclinical Settings is CDC’s latest HIV testing training for nonclinical settings. This training reflects scientific advances and evidence informed updates as expressed in CDC’s guidance: Implementing HIV Testing in Nonclinical Settings: A Guide For HIV Testing Providers (2016). Key influences on this curriculum have been shifts in HIV prevention, care, and treatment that have occurred since the Fundamentals of HIV Prevention Counseling training, and the policies that followed. This training has a streamlined Six-Step Protocol with greater emphasis on serostatus specific referrals and active linkage. A person’s current circumstances are explored, with less extensive pre- and post-test counseling.

Course Objectives

  • Utilize communication techniques to successfully build rapport with clients
  • Understand the window period and communicate retesting messages
  • Deliver the HIV rapid testing Six-Step Protocol to individuals in nonclinical settings
  • Improve the ability to link clients who are living with, or at high risk for HIV, into care and prevention services

Target Audience

This training is intended for who plan to provide HIV testing in nonclinical settings or program managers who will be overseeing HIV test providers. Participants should have a basic understanding of HIV transmission and individual HIV testing.

HIV Non-Clinical logoRealización de pruebas de VIH en escenarios no clínicos

La Realización de pruebas del VIH en escenarios no clínicos adiestra al personal que trabajan fuera de los escenarios clínicos a realizar pruebas del VIH usando el “Protocolo de los Seis Pasos”. El curso enfatiza los referidos/enlaces que son específicos al estado serológico del cliente, lo que garantiza un enlace más exitoso. Adicionalmente adiestra al personal como explorar las circunstancias actuales de una persona, con menos énfasis en consejería tradicional extensa: antes y después de la prueba del VIH. Este curso refleja los avances científicos y las actualizaciones que son basadas en evidencia, como se describe en el documento del CDC: Implementación de pruebas del VIH en escenarios no clínicos: Una guía para proveedores de pruebas de VIH (2016) (disponible solamente en inglés).

Objetivos del curso

Al final del curso, los participantes podrán:

    • Utilizar técnicas de comunicación para construir una relación de confianza con los clientes

 

    • Definir el período ventana

 

    • Enumerar por lo menos uno de los mensajes dirigidos a los clientes para que repitan la prueba del VIH

 

    • Llevar a cabo el protocolo de los seis pasos para la toma de pruebas rápidas del VIH a personas en un escenario no clínico

 

    • Mejorar la capacidad de enlazar a los clientes que viven con o están en riesgo de contraer el VIH con los servicios de cuidado y prevención

 

 

Audiencia

Esta capacitación está dirigida para proveedores que planean realizar pruebas del VIH en escenarios no clínicos o a los administradores de programas que supervisarán a los proveedores de pruebas del VIH. Los proveedores deben tener un conocimiento básico de la transmisión del VIH y de las pruebas individuales del VIH.

HIV Testing in Retail PharmaciesCourse Description

CDC encourages HIV testing in pharmacies as a promising model to reach previously undiagnosed persons living with HIV. Through its partnership with Denver Prevention Training Center (PTC), CDC has developed a new curriculum to train pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurses, doctors, and pharmacy retail/clerical staff.

 

Course Objectives

 

 

    • Describe the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.

 

    • List populations disproportionately impacted by HIV.

 

    • Summarize the importance of post- and pre-exposure prophylaxis as HIV prevention options.

 

    • Describe CDC’s HIV testing recommendations for adults and adolescents.

 

    • Apply the six steps of an HIV testing session.

 

    • List steps to perform, read, and interpret rapid HIV test results.

 

    • Describe implementation models and lessons learned from retail pharmacies providing rapid HIV testing.

 

 

Target Audience

This training is intended for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurses, doctors, and pharmacy retail/clerical staff.

Course Description

Personalized Cognitive Counseling (PCC) is an intervention designed to reduce sexual risk behaviors among men who have sex with men (MSM) who are repeat testers for HIV. It encourages clients to identify thoughts & feelings during a recent episode of condomless anal intercourse (CAI) in order to reduce risk in future situations.

Course Objectives

  • Explain the background, rationale, and story behind PCC, including its recent adaptation for episodic substance use.

  • List the steps and core components of PCC and explain how each one is tied to intervention outcomes.

  • Define terminology used in PCC, e.g., self-justification, online thinking, offline thinking.

  • Learn how to determine a client’s eligibility for PCC.

  • Help a client draw out a recent episode of condomless anal intercourse (CAI) and, using the Checklist of Thoughts, identify self-justifications used during this episode.

  • Support clients in their plans for handling future situations and make appropriate referrals for PrEP and substance abuse treatment.

  • Understand how to implement PCC in clinical settings including integrating alongside existing HIV testing protocols.

Target Audience

The primary intended audience for this course is individuals experienced in HIV counseling and testing from community-based organizations, HIV/AIDS service agencies, and health departments with existing HIV testing programs. Prerequisites for participation in the training include at least one year of experience conducting HIV-related testing and education.

Promise for High Impact Prevention logoCourse Description

Community PROMISE is an effective, community-level HIV/STD prevention intervention that relies on role model stories and peer advocates from social networks (e.g. peers from clinic or community) to reduce HIV risk behaviors and increase engagement related to the HIV continuum of care. The intervention is based on behavioral theories including Stages of Change. PROMISE begins with a community identification process to collect and analyze information about the risk networks, sex and drug risk behaviors, indicators related to the HIV continuum of care, and identification of determinants of risk. This helps agencies identify and intervene with the intervention populations and appropriately tailor the intervention to specific network needs. Members of the intervention population who have made positive behavior change and/or engage in HIV care including adherence to medication are interviewed and role models stories are written based upon the interviews. The stories are personal accounts about how and why they took steps to reduce risk and engage in HIV care and being adherent to medication and the resulting positive effects on their lives. Peer advocates from the intervention population are recruited and trained to distribute the role model stories and prevention materials within their social networks. New role model stories are written based on continuous formative research that reflects behavior change within the target population.

Course Objectives

  • Describe the four core elements of Community PROMISE.

  • Apply the knowledge and skills to conduct a community identification (CID) process.

  • Explain how to write a CID report.

  • Use stages of change data from the intervention population interview to plan appropriate role model interviews and stories.

  • Explain the origin, purpose, and components of role model stories.

  • Conduct a role model story interview.

  • Write a role model story.

  • Describe the process for designing a role model story publication.

  • Plan for the recruitment, training, and retention of peer advocates.

  • Describe how to engage in the ongoing evaluation of Community PROMISE.

  • Describe how PROMISE is High-Impact Prevention (HIP)-compliant.

  • Demonstrate knowledge about implementing PROMISE with people living with HIV (PLWH) in a clinical setting, and implementing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with high-risk negatives (HRN).

Sin Buscar Excusas logoCourse Description

Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses is a singlesession, small-group, video-based behavioral intervention that aims to increase sexual safety and HIV testing and care among Hispanic/Latino gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM). Sexual safety includes having fewer partners, using condoms consistently, engaging in less risky sexual behaviors, using pre-exposure prophylaxis (PREP) or postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) as needed, and communicating with one’s partner about monogamy or HIV status. Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses can be implemented in various settings, including clinics and community agencies. Group sessions last approximately 60 minutes and include three core elements.

Course Objectives

  • Describe the Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses intervention.

  • Describe the definition of “Sexual Safety.”

  • Describe the core elements of Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses.

  • Describe the key characteristics of Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses.

  • Describe the theory behind Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses.

  • Define the HIP approach that is integrated into Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses.

  • Describe the program’s effectiveness and benefits of using the program.

Target Audience

The Sin Buscar Excusas/No Excuses intervention targets Hispanic/Latino gay and bisexual men and other MSM who are 18 years and older.

Course Description

Sister to Sister is a brief (30-45 minute), one-on-one, skills-based HIV and sexually transmitted disease (STD) risk-reduction behavioral intervention that is delivered during the course of a routine medical visit by a female health care provider. The purpose of Sister to Sister is to:

  • provide intensive, culturally sensitive health information to empower and educate women

  • help women understand the various behaviors that put them at risk for HIV and other STDs

  • enhance women’s knowledge, beliefs, confidence and skills to help reduce their risk for STDs, especially HIV

The intervention is highly structured and implemented in a primary health care setting by nurses, health educators, or other professional clinic staff using a scripted teaching guide. It is educational, engaging, and gender-appropriate and uses videos, brainstorming, demonstrations, and skills-building activities. It is designed to be easily integrated into the health care provider’s standard clinical practice. As such, Sister to Sister is an effective tool for addressing the needs of both patients and providers in primary health care settings.

Course Objectives

  • Explain the theoretical framework of the curriculum and how it is applied to the intervention activities

  • Describe the science behind the curriculum

  • Describe the teaching methods used in the curriculum

  • Effectively model skills and confidence to teach the curriculum with fidelity in a caring and non-judgmental manner

  • Help women make proud and responsible decisions to respect and protect themselves because they feel they are worth it

Target Audience

Originally designed for African American women, Sister to Sister is for high-risk sexually active women 18-45 years old who have male partners and are attending primary health care clinics.

Course Description

Social Network Strategy (SNS) for HIV Testing Recruitment is an evidence supported approach to engaging and motivating a person to accept a service. SNS is particularly useful to recruit persons at risk for HIV into testing.

Course Objectives

  • Describe the Social Network Strategy

  • Describe the four phrases of the Social Network Strategy

  • Draw a Social Network diagram

  • Demonstrate the use of program data for program monitoring

  • Describe the steps to develop a plan for integrating Social Network Strategy into an existing program

Target Audience

This 2-day training is designed for participants considering using Social Network Strategy for HIV Testing Recruitment at their agency or organization.

Estrategia de redes sociales para el reclutamiento a pruebas del VIH

La Estrategia de redes sociales para el reclutamiento a pruebas del VIH es una estrategia de salud pública. Esta estrategia está basada en el principio de que las personas dentro de una red social conocen, confían, y comparten las mismas vulnerabilidades y comportamientos de riesgo para el VIH. De esta manera, estas personas pueden ejercer mayor influencia entre ellos mismos. El curso Estrategias de redes sociales para el reclutamiento a pruebas del VIH, adiestra al personal en un enfoque basado en evidencia para involucrar y motivar a una persona vulnerable de contraer el VIH para aceptar un servicio como la prueba del VIH.

Objetivos del curso

Al final del curso, los participantes podrán:

  • Describir la Estrategia de Redes Sociales

  • Detallar las cuatro fases de la Estrategia de Redes Sociales

  • Leer un Diagrama de Redes Sociales

  • Desarrollar diagramas de Estrategia de Redes Sociales

  • Explicar la importancia de la recopilación y el monitoreo de datos para la Estrategia de Redes Sociales

Audiencia

Esta capacitación de 2 días está diseñada para proveedores que estén considerando utilizar la estrategia de redes sociales para el reclutamiento a pruebas del VIH en su agencia u organización.

Stay Connected logoCourse Description

The Stay Connected intervention is a comprehensive evidence-based behavioral intervention designed to increase retention in care for people with HIV (PWH). Retention in HIV medical care is defined as having two or more visits at least 3 months apart during a given year. This intervention requires all members of the healthcare team to deliver brief, positive, welcoming messages to all patients at the clinic. Clinical care staff (primary care providers and clinical support staff) deliver encouraging health messages to patients about the importance of staying in care. The intervention also designates a Retention Specialist to meet with patients experiencing barriers to keeping their appointments. The Retention Specialist focuses on establishing a relationship with patients through three (3) face-to-face sessions at the clinic and phone calls in between appointments and serving as a bridge between the patients and the healthcare providers. The intervention has designated an Administrator/Champion, Clinical Supervisor/Champion, and Intervention Coordinator to support the implementation of Stay Connected.

The Stay Connected intervention supports the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), which is an ambitious plan to reduce new HIV infections, increase access to care, improve the lives of those with HIV, and reduce HIV-related health disparities. Stay Connected increases the likelihood that patients will engage in care and we know that once engaged in care, 93% of patients are prescribed antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART can help people with HIV live healthier, longer lives, and has been shown to reduce sexual transmission of HIV by 96%. Eighty-one percent of patients prescribed ART become virally suppressed, which helps patients live healthy, longer lives and greatly reduces their chances of passing HIV on to others.

Course Objectives

By the end of the training, Clinic Staff will be able to:

  •  Identify the goals of Stay Connected

  • Describe the findings of the Stay Connected study and its impact on patient retention

  • Explain the roles that clinic staff have in retaining patients in care

  • Identify role-specific Stay Connected messages

By the end of the training, the Retention Specialist will be able to:

  • Explain the importance of retaining PWH in care

  • Describe components of the Stay Connected intervention

  • Explain the role of the Retention Specialist

  • Apply MI and strengths-based communication to build a trusting relationship with patients

  • Utilize change talk and sustain talk communication to address ambivalence in behavior change

  • Discuss key implementation aspects of Stay Connected which involve Retention Specialists