Colloquium: “National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD)”

February 13th, 2020- This month’s commission meeting featured a panel discussion in honor of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, which commemorated this year on February 7th, 2020.  Moderators Danielle Campbell & Greg Wilson, Co-Chairs of the Black/African American Community (BAAC) Task Force led the conversation with panelists Dr. Derrick L. Butler from T.H.E. Health and Wellness Center, Dr. Condessa Curly from Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Dr. William King from W King Health Care Group, and Dr. Rochelle Rawls from LAC+USC Medical Center’s Rand Schrader Clinic.

 

These medical providers gave insight into necessary efforts to effectively address barriers and social determinants of health continuing to disproportionately affect Black/African American communities. Perspectives were given from a combination of both their shared experiences and best practices, alongside concerns in resolving the epidemic and providing immersive opportunities to increase HIV education, testing, community involvement, and treatment. Significant solutions were identified by panelists and voiced by present community members, demonstrating the successive theme of unified support systems anchored in reducing stigma, increasing dissemination, and framing prevention of HIV/AIDS within black communities.

You can find the flyer available for download below as well as the full video of the panel (also available on Youtube).

We also encourage you to read this insightful commentary on the day’s panel discussion written by Dr. Nina Harawa, CHIPTS Policy Impact Core Director.

A National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Panel Discussion - Flyer

 

 

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “Impact of HIV/AIDS in the Latinx Community”

October 10th, 2019- This month’s commission meeting featured a panel focused on the impacts of HIV/AIDS in the Latinx Community. Our panelists included  Jose Vasquez from APLA’s HIVE Program, Johanna Padilla from the Los Angeles LGBT and Trans Wellness Center,  Thelma Garcia from East Los Angeles Women’s Center, and Commissioner Carlos Moreno. The panel was moderated by Jorge Diaz.

The discussion provided insight into the experiences of Latinx/Latino Indigenous narratives, with major objectives to highlight the urgency of the HIV/AIDS epidemic within these community spaces and present deeper understandings to the issues faced. Challenges were expressed regarding the unique barriers of language, cultural/spiritual stigmas, knowledge of prevention and treatment services, and fear. Greater solutions were also noted, including a call for more trauma-informed services, compassion from providers, education of youth and cis/het populations, and more visible identity-specific support systems. Overall, the conversation was intersectional, inclusive, and non-monolithic.

You can find the flyer available for download below as well as the full video of the panel (also available on Youtube).

Impact of HIV/AIDS in Latinx Communities - Flyer

 

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “The Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative”

July 11th, 2019- The Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative, alongside Los Angeles Homeless Services, presented at the July commission meeting to provide a point-in-time update on the homeless count within the Los Angeles area. The background on these methodologies were discussed. Likewise, the significant factors driving homelessness were shared and important insights on how to reduce these numbers were highlighted.

A comprehensive understanding of this panel discussion can be found in the videos below (also available on Youtube).

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “HIV and HIV-Related Stigma in Native and Indigenous Communities”

June 13th, 2019 — At this month’s commission meeting, we held a panel to discuss the impact of HIV/AIDS and HIV-related disparities within Native and Indigenous communities. Additionally, solutions were highlighted on what our society can do to decrease experienced stigma, acknowledge historic trauma, and respect the leadership to develop sounds programs/policies by these communities. Our panelists included community member Leland Morrill and Professor Gabriel Estrada from California State University, Long Beach. The panel was also facilitated by moderator Mark Parra from the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health.  The Indigenous identities represented included, but were not exclusive to, the Diné, Caxcan Nahua, Raramuri, Chiricahua Apache, and Chicana/o ancestries.

You can find the flyer available for download below as well as the full video of the panel (also available on Youtube).

Colloquia Series: Panel on Native and Indigenous Communities - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “Panel in Observance of National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day”

April 11, 2019 — We put together a special panel discussion to discuss the impact of HIV and AIDS among young people and to highlight the work young people are doing to respond to the epidemic at the April LA County Commission on HIV meeting as part of our Research and Community Colloquia series. Our panelists included Antwon Chaplin from UCLA ATN Cares, Omar Nieto from the UCLA Department of Family Medicine, Vincent Pancucci from the LA LGBT Center, and Miranda Ramirez from the Friends Research Institute. The panel was moderated by Thomas Davis from The Catharsis Project.

You can find the flyer available for download below as well as the full video of the panel (also available on Youtube). We also have a mini gallery featured on our Facebook page!

Panel on Youth and HIV April Colloquia - Flyer

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “NUMBERS and VOICES: A Profile of PrEP among Latino MSM in Los Angeles County”

Amanda Landrian Gonzalez

September 13, 2018 – Dr. Ron Brooks, Omar Nieto, and Amanda Landrian Gonzalez

presented “NUMBERS and VOICES: A Profile of PrEP among Latino MSM in Los Angeles County” at this month’s HIV Research and Community Colloquia series at the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV meeting. The presentation used both quantitative and qualitative data to provide a profile of PrEP-related issues among Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) in Los Angeles County. The presentation looked at both Latino MSM non PrEP users and PrEP users.

Omar Nieto

For non-PrEP users, they expounded on the demographic and behavioral predictors of awareness, accessibility, and acceptability of PrEP among Latino MSM. For PrEP users, and explored the lived experiences of Latino MSM who are using PrEP, including motivations for initiating PrEP, challenges in accessing PrEP, and experiences with PrEP stigma. Based on the findings from the two studies, they provided recommendations of how service providers, health departments, and other community stakeholders may help optimize uptake of and persistent use of PrEP among Latino MSM.

The full presentation is available on Youtube and below and the you can download the presentation slides as well.

Numbers and Voices: A Profile of PrEP among Latino MSM in Los Angeles County - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “Health Disparities, Risk Behaviors and Healthcare Utilization Among Transgender Women in Los Angeles County: A Comparison from 1998-1999 to 2015-2016”

July 12, 2018 – Dr. Cathy Reback  presented at this month’s Research and Community Colloquia series at the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV meeting. She discussed the results from two studies of transgender women in Los Angeles County using the same methodology and survey assessment, comparing structural determinants of health, HIV/STI prevalence, HIV risk behaviors, substance use, gender confirmation procedures, and perceived discrimination and harassment/abuse across a 17-year time period. These findings elucidate specific areas of transgender women’s health and risk profiles that improved or worsened across this time period. While healthcare access has improved, transgender women continue to face significant barriers to good health, indicating the need for increased attention to this population.

The full presentation video and the presentation slides are available below!

Colloquium Health Disparities: LA County Commission on HIV - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “Project Rise”

May 10, 2018 – At this month’s Los Angeles County Commission on HIV meeting, Laura Bogart, PhD of RAND Corporation, Matt G. Mutchler, PhD, of California State University Dominguez Hills and APLA Health, and Sean J. Lawrence and Damone Thomas of APLA Health presented on the community-engaged process of developing and testing Project Rise, a client-centered and culturally congruent treatment adherence counseling program for Black/African-Americans living with HIV.  Their findings indicated that Rise had stronger effects on medication adherence than did prior HIV adherence intervention studies. In addition, the presenters described Rise 2.0, a new randomized controlled trial that is examining long-term effects of Rise on adherence and viral suppression.

The full presentation video is available and we’ve uploaded photos from the commission in our photo gallery and you can download the presentation slides below.

Project Rise: LA County Commission on HIV - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “The Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative: Real Help. Lasting Change”

March 8, 2018 – At the March Los Angeles County Commission on HIV meeting, Ashlee Oh, MPH, from the Chief Executive Office of the County of Los Angeles presented a colloquium on the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative.

Ms. Oh opened up the floor to a discussion of the initiative and welcomed feedback and questions from the Commission and her slides are an in depth look at the initiative and the different strategies implemented through the initiative.

To see the full presentation, you can watch Ashlee Oh’s colloquium on Youtube below and download the slides here:  CHIPTS Colloquia LA County Homeless Initiative - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!

Colloquium: “Sin Vergüenza Season 3- A Strategy to Reduce Stigma, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Addiction in LA”

January 4, 2018 – AltaMed’s English and Spanish telenovela webseries Sin Vergüenza (Without Shame) was developed to address a range of topics surrounding HIV in the Latino community overcoming stigma, seeking STD testing, treatment, behavioral health services, and violence. Earlier seasons encouraged viewers to seek HIV testing, promoted HIV medical care, treatment and the use of prevention methods including PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) and the impact of HIV on a family. The third season returns to address themes that are also heavily stigmatized but with an HIV lens including alcoholism, homophobia, and transphobia.

Natalie Sanchez and Hilda Sandoval from AltaMed discussed the process of developing an HIV social marketing campaign that is relevant and accessible to Latinos across multiple generations. They also addressed how the telenovela can be a channel to address the social determinants which are identified in the Los Angeles County HIV/AIDS Strategy 2020 and Beyond.  Ramon Garcia also spoke on the social impact of the series, breaking down the metrics and the reach of the videos and their goals with this new season. With the success of season’s one and two, Sanchez talked more about the use of entertaining content to increase awareness on HIV-related issues such as the ones they focused on in Season 3.

The colloquium finished up with a panel featuring the AltaMed team as well as Actor J.M. Longoria who plays Enrique Salazar and Actress Joanna Zoella who plays Christina Salazar who gave an in depth look at what it was like to play these characters and to meet people who were have watched the series.

You can download the flyer and presentation power point below and watch the full Colloquium presentation on YouTube!

No Stigma, No Shade, No Shame! Addressing Life, Love, Sex, and HIV Through Digital Media - Flyer
No Stigma, No Shade, No Shame: Addressing Life, Love, Sex and HIV Through Digital Media - Slides

CHIPTS hosts a monthly HIV Research and Community Colloquia Series in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV to highlight current issues and conversations surrounding HIV. Click here for past lectures and check out the events page for more information on future Colloquia presentations!