by Courtney Davis, Consulting Manager

Friday, December 1, 2023, marks the 35^th annual World AIDS Day. Since the emergence of the HIV virus and the first official case reporting of AIDS in 1981, more than 35 million people have died from the disease globally. It’s estimated that some 38 million people are currently living with the HIV virus today. The HIV virus, a global and devastating pandemic and at one time a likely death sentence to those who became infected, has today become both a treatable and preventable disease. Thanks to public health improvements and interventions over the past 40 years, people living with the HIV virus can today remain healthy and thrive. They can also be an active part of preventing further spread to their partners and loved ones.

Despite these public health advancements in care and prevention of the HIV virus,  AIDS remains a global health threat. While both treatable and preventable, there remains ongoing stigma and fear about the HIV virus and AIDS. To further unify global messaging and work to address these stigmas and fears,  this year’s World AIDS Day theme is Remember and Commit. It is a call to public health, healthcare, and community members to honor those who we have lost, acknowledge the public health advancements that have been made, and to build renewed commitment and determination to continue working towards a future when HIV and AIDs are no longer a global public health threat.

As part of RDA’s systems and program improvement work with public health and healthcare agencies, we have had the opportunity to partner with the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s Partners in AIDS Care and Education (PACE) Clinic for many years.  During this time, RDA has supported the preparation of the PACE Clinic’s annual reports for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program. These reports detail the numbers of individuals served and the types of health care and social service support delivered. Additionally, annual reports provide an opportunity to reflect on identified barriers to care observed and reported by community members living with HIV and AIDs and support programs in identifying quality improvement opportunities in clinic operations and community outreach and education initiatives.

The Ryan White HIV/AIDs Program, named after a teenager with hemophilia who was diagnosed with AIDS in 1984, was signed into legislation and developed in 1990. The teenager, Ryan White, lived six years with HIV and AIDS; a time during which he was confronted with prejudice, fear, and exclusionary practices, including even exclusion from school attendance. These experiences were all too common for individuals living with HIV and AIDs in its earliest years. Ryan passed away from AIDs in 1990, one month before the program that would be his namesake was created. A program that continues to operate to this day to provide resources and services to individuals living with HIV and AIDS; a program that supports individuals to be healthy, living long and thriving lives; a program that provides linkages to care, access to preventative services, and counseling; and a program that works to address community level fears and stigmas that persist today.

The PACE Clinic’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program provides resources and services to individuals living with HIV and AIDS in Santa Clara County who do not have access to needed health care services. The Clinic’s services are free for eligible community members, regardless of their immigration status.  The Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s PACE Clinic is an instrumental part of the public health and healthcare partnership established to improve health outcomes for those living with HIV and AIDS in our communities and to prevent its further spread.

As an employee-owned, majority-woman-managed California Social Purpose Corporation, RDA works to help public and community-based organizations to meet the needs of their communities. This work, at the strategic intersection of applied research, planning, and implementation, is grounded in RDA staff’s commitment to equity, access, and opportunity for all members of a community.

If you are interested in finding out more about RDA’s consulting services, please reach out to us at letstalk@RDAconsulting.com

You can learn more about the U.S. National HIV/AIDS Strategy for 2022 – 2025 and the Federal Government’s continuing work to address the critical public health issue of HIV/AIDS at HIV.gov.