in+care Campaign Update: The Results are In
National Quality Center (NQC) has completed its evaluation of the in+care Campaign -- the largest HIV quality improvement initiative carried out at the national level. We are pleased to announce that the Campaign demonstrated significant improvements in national retention and viral load suppression (VLS) performance.
Addressing the Gaps in the HIV Care Continuum for Women with HIV and their Partners: Recommendations for the National HIV/AIDS Strategy
Annual meetings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-sponsored Elimination of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (EMCT) Stakeholders Group and the Expert Panel on Reproductive Health and Preconception Care for People with HIV, held at the Washington, D.C. headquarters of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) the week of May 25th, 2015, provided an exciting and energizing opportunity to discuss challenging clinical and policy issues.
Integrating Mental Health and Substance Use Services into HIV Primary Care
When incorporating best practices and guidelines for HIV care, clinicians must take into account their clients’ mental health and substance use needs. Approximately 30- 50% of people living with HIV/AIDS have current or past severe to moderate depression. At its highest estimate, that’s more than double the prevalence of the general population.
Using Fellowships to Impact HIV Workforce Deficits
A critical shortage of practitioners who treat HIV/AIDS patients in the United States is on the horizon. According the American Academy of HIV Medicine 32% of today’s HIV clinicians will stop providing care over the next 10 years. Nearly one-third of today’s workforce will retire leaving a shortage unless new practitioners can be encouraged to replace them. The current HIV workforce is largely composed of medical providers who entered the field more than 20 years ago. Today, the HIV care system faces a crisis in care capacity as clinicians retire without replacements.
iCare: Evaluating the Usability of iPad Minis in the Clinical Setting
Technology is great…when it works. This comes to mind when technology is supposed to enhance an experience but a malfunction causes that experience to cease. We know that technology should have the capacity to transform our lives, including our lives as HIV care providers. But in order for it to do so, it has to work. It has to be usable (i.e. easy, reliable, and fast). While iPad Minis have been on the market for several years now, a review of the literature yielded no current studies to examine their usability or effectiveness in clinical use.
Using Technology to Promote Engagement in Care
How many of you are currently reading this blog on your phones? Wait! Don’t answer that. Just the fact that you are reading this and not playing Bejeweled means we are off to a great start. However, if you are using your cell phone to access the internet, you aren’t alone. As of May 2013, 85% of U.S. adults are online, 91% have a cell phone and 56% have a smartphone.[1] Along with increased smartphone ownership, the use of mobile phone applications or ‘apps’ is on the rise.
Pitavastatin and Darunavir/Ritonavir
Taking the Best of the Rapid Testing in Labor and Delivery Project to Fresno, CA: Fresno Perinatal HIV Summit – October 26, 2011
“I learned that HIV patients are the same as other patients with chronic disease and need our attention and care.”
How Can AETCs Best Evaluate Their HIV Testing Activities?
The new CDC funding (associated with CDC announcement PS 10-10138) provides support for AETCs to deliver training and technical assistance coordinated through funded health departments. Although local needs may differ across sites, regional evaluators have agreed on the measureable constructs below:
Should We Conceptualize Major Depression a Medical Comorbidity of HIV Infection?
About 30% of people receiving care and treatment for HIV infection have major depression. But is it best to conceptualize major depression as a mental illness or a medical illness? If you wake up in a bad mood but your body feels fine, you are very unlikely to have major depression. Physical symptoms, such as severe fatigue and disturbances of sleep and appetite, are part of the diagnostic criteria for major depression, and other physical complaints, such as dizziness, palpitations and gastrointestinal disturbances, are very common.