Strengthening Systems of Care for People with HIV & Opioid Use Disorder

Project Background

From 2011-2015, the opioid overdose death rate among persons diagnosed with HIV increased by 42.7 percent.¹ The HRSA-funded initiative Strengthening Systems of Care for People with HIV and Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) provides coordinated technical assistance (TA) across HIV and behavioral health/substance use service providers. The project aims to enhance system-level coordination and networks of care among Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) recipients and other federal, state, and local entities. The purpose of this initiative is to ensure that people with HIV and OUD have access to care, treatment, and recovery services that are patient-centered and culturally responsive.

JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI) has been funded to work with the following nine states participating in the initiative: Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.

JSI is partnering with NASTAD to implement this initiative, with subject matter expertise from Boston Medical Center.

Map: state partners by number of HIV/HCV outbreak vulnerability counties and Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America priority jurisdictions

Project Activities & Services

Landscape Analysis

• Assess current systems of care at the state, service delivery, and client levels.
• Identify HIV and OUD partners, stakeholders, and decision-makers.
• Identify existing funding streams available for an integrated and sustainable OUD response.
• Develop a comprehensive landscape analysis report.

TA Provision

• Develop state-specific TA plans.
• Implement the TA plans, including convening cross-sector stakeholder engagement sessions and developing TA resources.
• Coordinate with other organizations providing TA within states.
• Conduct monthly state partner calls and quarterly cross-state webinars to facilitate peer learning.
• Ensure systems are in place to achieve sustainable coordination.

Evaluation

• Develop state-specific evaluation plans.
• Collect quarterly process and outcome measure data from partnering states.
• Share evaluation results with states and the HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau.
• Develop case studies to document models of increased system-level capacity for people with HIV and OUD at the state and local levels, including best practices and lessons learned.
• Develop and disseminate a final project evaluation report.

Dissemination

• Disseminate TA materials and case studies nationally.
• Post TA resources and tools on TargetHIV.org as they become available.

Key Outcomes

Through new partnerships and innovative responses, this project will contribute to the following outcomes within the nine participating states:

• Strengthened systems of care to address HIV and OUD treatment, care, and recovery needs.
• Increased cross-sector collaboration across federal, state, and local partners.
• Improved system-level coordination and leveraging of available resources.
• Enhanced care and treatment services to deliver optimal patient-centered and culturally responsive care.
• Improved health outcomes for people with HIV and OUD.

Download Project Fact Sheet

1. Bosh K, Crepaz N, Dong X, Lyss S, Mendoza M, Mitsch A. Opioid Overdose Deaths among Persons with HIV Infection, United States, 2011-2015. Presented at Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, Seattle, WA, March 2019.