Programs
The Consortium's mission now reflects changes in HIV prevention and treatment, incorporation of collaborative and integrated approaches to care, and emerging issues such as HCV. While still administering RW and HOPWA funds, expanded programming includes several programs described below.
Ryan White. The Ryan White HIV Treatment Modernization Act provides funding for emergency and supportive services to people living with HIV to access and maintain HIV medical care. The Piedmont HIV Health Care Consortium administers the Ryan White program in an eleven county region comprised of: Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Johnston, Lee, Orange, Person, Vance, Wake and Warren counties.
Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA). The Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program is intended to develop a range of housing assistance and support services for low-income persons with HVI and their families. It was authorized by the AIDS Housing Opportunity Act of 1992 and is administered by the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) office. The Piedmont HIV Health Care Consortium administers these funds in an eight county region consisting of: Chatham, Durham, Granville, Lee, Orange, Person, Vance and Warren counties.
In February 2008, the Consortium was one of three agencies awarded the NC HCV/HIV Harm Reduction Program from the NC Communicable Disease Branch to, "provide training and capacity building to health care providers who see patients at risk for HIV and HCV and to provide outreach to persons infected with or at risk of infection with HIV/HCV." The Consortium is part of a state-wide collaborative including the NC State Hepatitis C Coordinator (S Thompson), the NC Harm Reduction Coalition and the Western NC AIDS Project. This new legislatively appropriated funding extends through March 2011. A collaborative approach between the three funded agencies is working to reduce risk of infection of both HIV and HCV and to integrate HCV care into clinical practices through professional training and education.
Bridges to Good Health and Treatment (BRIGHT) ((http://www.brightproject.org/) is an intensive strengths-based case management program for HIV+ inmates in collaboration with the NC Department of Corrections (http://www.doc.state.nc.us/) and the UNC Center for Infectious Diseases (http://www.id.unc.edu/) and funded through the Pfizer Foundation's ConnectHIV program (http://hivaidsphilanthropy.pfizer.com/connecthiv.aspx).
In 2004, the Consortium received funding for PHICAS, the Piedmont HIV Integrated Community Access System through the Healthy Communities Access Program (HCAP) of the US HRSA (contract G92CS02237-02-02) to increase access to care for people living with the co-morbidities of HIV and HCV infections and increasing prevention and screening services for people at risk of either of these infections in six counties surrounding Durham, NC (see http://www.phicas.org/). Funding for PHICAS extended through June 2007. PHICAS' five core components included (1) clinical education and training, (2) community-based education and training, (3) identification of systemic barriers such as housing, transportation, emergency supports, lack of health care services, (4) providing service coordination and substance abuse counseling for HIV+, HCV+ and co-infected individuals, and (5) implementing integrated data management tools.
