Prison Health Initiative

Action for Boston Community Development, Inc. (ABCD), Boston, MA
The goal of the ABCD CARES+ program is to provide comprehensive services to women, which include individualized re-entry planning, post-release transitional support services, group re-entry planning and support, and post-release support and health care services to address gaps in the local service network. The women served are primarily women of color who are incarcerated or have been recently released from Suffolk House of Corrections and are living with or at risk of HIV/AIDS, infectious hepatitis, and STDs.

AIDS Foundation Houston, Inc. (AFH), Houston, TX
The Project Wall Talk program seeks to reduce risky behaviors associated with the transmission of HIV among the incarcerated in Texas correctional facilities through a peer-led intervention. This grant will allow AFH to accomplish three goals: (1) expand the successful Wall Talk program into 12 privately managed Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities and train a minimum of 120 peer educators who will then reach an additional 6,000 offenders each year; (2) provide HIV prevention services to the incarcerated in Texas prisons and state jails; and (3) strengthen the capacity of local, statewide, and national criminal justice systems to implement cost-effective, sustainable HIV/AIDS/STD prevention programs.

AIDS Foundation Chicago (AFC), Chicago, IL
The Re-Entry Access Project will allow AFC to establish linkages between prison facilities and its re-entry services and to develop a statewide best practices model for discharge planning of HIV-positive inmates. The project will engage both Illinois Department of Corrections leaders and front-line staff at correctional facilities throughout the state as a strategy to increase their awareness and utilization of AFC’s re-entry program and other educational and supportive services for HIV-positive inmates and ex-offenders.

The Catalyst Foundation for AIDS Awareness and Care, Lancaster, CA
The Life Challenge HIV Prevention Program will expand the Foundation’s use of “Street Smart,” a CDC recommended HIV intervention, for its Life Challenge program for incarcerated teens. The program is carried out within youth probation camps. This peer-led intervention uses the popular opinion leader model within the social networks of incarcerated teens. The program also supports post-release activities including access to harm reduction supplies, HIV prevention information, and access and referrals for services.

Kansas City Free Health Clinic, Kansas City, MO
The Kansas City Free Health Clinic will adapt and implement the CDC recommended intervention, “Safety Counts,” to serve incarcerated individuals in the Kansas City area. The clinic’s Action for Inmates Project is designed to reduce both high-risk drug use and sexual behaviors. The intervention includes HIV testing and counseling, HIV prevention and care information, and access to prevention supplies. The program will also serve those recently released from incarceration and affected family members.

The Orange County Bar Foundation, Santa Ana, CA
The Foundation’s Hermana Project targets incarcerated Latinas (ages 15-25) in juvenile detention centers that are at high risk for HIV infection because they engage in unprotected sex or share drug injecting equipment. The Hermana Project will provide a 6-week curriculum designed to increase knowledge of HIV/STDs and hepatitis prevention, reduce risky sexual behavior, enhance assertiveness and communication skills, and increase condom use. Program participants will also have access to HIV testing, counseling, and referral services.

Step-up, Inc., Indianapolis, IN
Step-Up will expand its Youth At Risk (YAR) program, a comprehensive HIV/STD prevention education intervention for incarcerated youth, to serve four additional detention facilities. The program utilizes a multi-session, skills-building curriculum to address high-risk behaviors such as unprotected sex, drug and alcohol abuse, and multiple sexual partners. Step-Up will also develop a comprehensive statewide resource guide to help post-release youth access services such as health care, HIV/STD testing, mental health care, and substance abuse treatment.