Ryan White Title I Survey: services for HIV-positive substance users

People living with HIV/AIDS who are also substance users need primary health care, substance abuse treatment, and support services. They also require care delivery strategies that are comprehensive and innovative. Forty-three of 51 Ryan White Care Act Title I grantees funding 197 substance abuse treatment agencies in the United States participated in this study. Grantees were surveyed to determine (1) use of Title I funding to provide services for HIV-positive substance users, (2) the types of substance abuse services provided, (3) strengths and weaknesses of different metropolitan substance abuse service delivery systems, (4) sources of information used to assess the needs of substance users, (5) gaps in knowledge about substance users and their service needs, and (6) examples of successful strategies within the eligible metropolitan areas. The results of the study demonstrate that most grantees use Title I funds to support some form of substance abuse treatment for people with HIV; however, many do not use the funds to address the barriers to care that they identified. Lack of provider knowledge, expertise, and awareness, were cited as important barriers to care by a majority of the grantees. The availability of harm reduction approaches to care is an area in which there is wide variation. Several Title I programs have supported innovative programs for HIV positive substance users that may be used elsewhere as program models. It is important to find ways to incorporate these issues into the needs assessment and service prioritization process.