141st APHA Annual Meeting

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285007
LGBT health and HIV interventions: Best practices in Haiti

Monday, November 4, 2013

Amanda Donnell, MPH , Family Case Management, African Services Committee, New York, NY
SEROvie is a Haitian grassroots organization that has been providing HIV and AIDS prevention and support services to men who have sex with men (MSM) since 1999. The organization has a dual focus on health and rights, seeking to empower its clients to break a cycle of discrimination, poverty, and HIV infection. The work and services of SEROvie reach over 3,500 beneficiaries and ranges from condom and lubrication distribution and radio emission on reducing discrimination and HIV infection, to anti-discrimination pamphlets, peer education and outreach in the field. SEROvie has developed a vocational training program that gives MSM the skills and knowledge to support themselves and their families; and therefore decrease their risk of engaging in activities that would put them at higher risk for contracting HIV/AIDS. As one of the only organization working with the LGBT community in Haiti, SEROvie has significant expertise in community-based and peer-led initiatives that respond to their unique needs. In response to the 2010 earthquake, SEROvie conducted a community assessment to identify the most pressing post-disaster needs of LGBT individuals in Haiti. Assessments indicate that access to safe, confidential and specialized medical services for LGBT is a high priority need, yet social stigma associated with homosexuality create barriers that prevent LGBT individuals from accessing HIV/AIDS prevention and care services from the state. In response to that assessment, and with the generous funding of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, SEROvie has opened the first ever LGBT specific testing and support clinic at it's Port-au-Prince office.

Learning Areas:
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Other professions or practice related to public health
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Provision of health care to the public

Learning Objectives:
Describe best practices regarding health and HIV prevention, care and support among the LGBT community in Haiti from a local grassroots perspective Discuss the situation of the Haitian LGBT community in a post-disaster environment Analyze access to health care and discrimination against LGBT individuals in Haiti

Keywords: HIV Interventions, Gay Men

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have an MPH from New York University. In 2011 I completed a capacity building fellowship with a local LGBT organization in Haiti. I completed research on the post-disaster situation of the LGBT community and co-authored and presented a poster on that research at the 2012 International AIDS Conference. I am currently working on publishing a paper on that research with a mentor at the Harvard School of Public Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3303.0: LGBT health poster session