Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #115401

Joy P. Nanda, DSc, MS, MHS¹, Rena G. Boss-Victoria, DrPH, MSN, RN, CNS², Olugbemiga Ekundayo, MD, MPH³, Audrey Zarba, PhD², Ludmilla F. Scott, MPH DrPH Candte⁴, and Pierre Vigilance, MD, MPH⁵. (1) Population and Family Health Sciences, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, 624 North Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, 410-614-3485, jnanda@jhsph.edu, (2) Public Health Program, Center for HIV Prevention Evaluation, Policy and Research, Morgan State University, 1700 E Cold Spring Lane, Jenkins Bldg, Room 343, Baltimore, MD 21251, (3) The MPH/DrPH Program, Department of Public Health, Morgan State University, 343 Jenkens Builging, 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21251-0001, (4) Ludimar Consultants, 14804 Cross River Court, Burtonsville, MD 20866-3104, (5) Baltimore City Health Department, Division of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Assistant Commissioner, 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21251

The purpose of this presentation is to describe the salient components of the (Rapid Assessment Response and Evaluation (RARE) methodology, its utilization, and limitations for application.

RARE is commonly applied as a qualitative tool for describing and monitoring the dynamics of community level epidemics. It provides information about vulnerable populations and guides the formulation of strategies for designing effective interventions within very short time frames. We applied this methodology to assess the HIV epidemic among inner city Baltimore youth aged 18 to 24 years. RARE was adapted, using multi-source and multi-discipline data collection methodology to achieve planned objectives within specified time frame.

We utilized five techniques during the rapid data collection process:

1) Behavioral and environmental mapping to determine risk by neighborhoods 2) Ethnographic observations of sites to identify hot-spots within twenty-block areas 3) Street intercept of neighborhood residents to assess conditions of HIV/AIDS 4) In-depth interviews of youth and neighborhood residents 5) Focus group sessions among youths, RARE community advisory board (RARE-CAB) members and cultural or community experts and leaders.

Building collaborative partnership among policy makers, community residents and the academic community, we successfully elicited active participation from members of each focus group. Sustained planning, training of personnel, open discussions, and field practice sessions were key to successful implementation.

Learning Objectives: