CLAFH, NYC Health + Hospitals Correctional Services Partner to Produce HRSA-Funded Webinars on Engaging Latino/as in HIV Primary Care
NYU Silver’s Center for Latino Adolescent and Family Health (CLAFH) and NYC Health + Hospitals Correctional Health Services have collaborated to develop a Health Resources and Services Administration-funded webinar series on culturally appropriate HIV primary care engagement and service delivery with Latino populations. Details and a link to the content, which is free of charge, are available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
CLAFH Director Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, who is the lead author and presenter of the webinars, explained, “Latinos are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS yet are routinely overlooked in regards to national prioritization of HIV prevention and treatment needs.” This webinar series serves as a guide for health and social service providers to improve engagement and retention in care among Latino/as living with HIV and with a history of criminal justice involvement. The core goal of the webinar series is to enhance culturally competent HIV primary care delivery in order to improve sustained viral suppression outcomes and reduce new infections.”
The webinars cover three modules: 1) increasing health care utilization among Latino/a HIV patients, 2) overview of HIV/AIDS among Latino/as, and 3) HIV/AIDS and incarceration among Latino/as. While the curriculum addresses issues specific to Puerto Ricans and those who are or have been incarcerated, Dr. Guilamo-Ramos said much of it is relevant to the broader Latino community. In addition to providing important facts, the webinars introduce four conceptual frameworks aimed at improving the cultural appropriateness of care for Latino/as living with HIV. Furthermore, Dr. Guilamo-Ramos, who is also Pilot and Mentoring Core Director at the Center for Drug Use and HIV Research, a NIDA funded P30 Center, and an infectious disease nurse practitioner affiliated with the Adolescent AIDS Program at Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, noted that the webinars draw not only from his research and scholarship, but also from his direct practice work with Latino young people living with or at risk of HIV.
The free webinars are designed for diverse providers of care, including primary care, mental health and substance use treatment and social services. Continuing education units are available for physicians, nurses, and Certified Health Educators, as well as many other health and social service professionals who view the two part webinar series, complete an evaluation, and pass a posttest. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York City Health + Hospitals Correctional Health Services, and CLAFH are jointly providing the continuing education units for this activity. For more information, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Training and Continuing Education Online.