The
West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR), Bureau for
Public Health met with local and federal partners today to share preliminary
findings from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
regarding the HIV outbreak in Kanawha County.
As
part of the ongoing response to this outbreak, the CDC has been in Charleston
conducting an Epi-Aid
investigation to further examine access and barriers to services; assess
behaviors, attitudes and beliefs of people who inject drugs and other community
stakeholders; and review and analyze HIV contact tracing procedures and other data
to help identify potential opportunities for public health intervention. The
CDC presented its preliminary findings today.
The preliminary findings were
informed by more than 60 in-depth interviews and numerous field visits and
observations, in addition to time spent conducting data abstraction and
analysis. The investigation identified gaps and
barriers associated with services in the community and gaps in medical services
and challenges in accessing them for people who inject drugs. Findings include:
The
investigation additionally identified gaps and barriers associated with
services in the community, including:
low access to
sterile syringes and injection equipment,
challenges in
accessing and navigating substance use disorder treatment and HIV prevention
services and treatment,
and people at
highest risk for HIV not regularly receiving HIV testing.
People
who inject drugs also commonly reported mistrust of the medical system along
with experiencing stigma and discrimination in these systems.
Investigators
noted numerous local staff and organizations working to implement innovative
approaches to delivering prevention and care services for people who inject
drugs, and new partnerships continuing to develop in response to the HIV
outbreak.
“We
are thankful for all the hard work the CDC Epi Aid team, the Kanawha-Charleston
Health Department, and many others have done, especially through this last
month,” said Dr. Ayne Amjad, State Health Officer and Commissioner of DHHR’s
Bureau for Public Health. “The Bureau will provide full recommendations when
they are available sometime in August and will work as a team to address them.”
DHHR’s
Bureau for Public Health and partners have continued to respond to the HIV
outbreak through the formation of the Kanawha Valley HIV Testing Outreach Group,
which has tested more than 400 individuals at risk for HIV. As a result of
increased access to testing and outreach, nearly a quarter of the positive
cases associated with the outbreak were found and linked to care.
“Our
team on the ground continues to conduct rapid HIV testing, refer patients to
care and prevention services (including services that support continuity of
care), and address mental health, opioid misuse, and primary care needs,” Amjad
said. “We believe that a whole community and whole health care model approach
is the best way to address any infectious disease outbreak.”
Additionally, BPH has provided virtual HIV counseling and testing training
to non-traditional partners such as community Quick Response Team
members and social service providers (shelters, food distribution) and is working with behavioral health providers and state
opioid response grantees to integrate HIV testing and prevention into provided
services.
“Responding
to this increase in HIV cases in our community requires us to adapt the way we
deliver services,” said Dr. Sherri Young, Health Officer for the
Kanawha-Charleston Health Department. “Our community partners have worked
collaboratively to enhance, integrate and position both fixed and mobile
services that meet people where they are. Our local, state and federal partners
have all been instrumental in helping to guide this important work.”
Final recommendations will be made sometime in August.