HAIL program links HIV/AIDS info, services
HAIL program links HIV/AIDS info, services
By linking together via the World Wide Web, Houston-area service and education organizations have found they have improved access to HIV prevention and treatment information for health educators, providers, and patients right in their own community.
The Houston AIDS Information Link (HAIL) was initiated in 1994 by five Houston community-based service organizations to provide immediate, electronic access to HIV/AIDS information. With funding support from the Bethesda-based National Library of Medicine (NLM), HAIL has grown to 15 culturally diverse treatment, service, educational and library organizations.
"When HAIL began in 1994, most of our member agencies did not have any connection to the Internet at work, although some staff were familiar with the Internet through their home use," says Jeffrey Meyer, a network support specialist with the University of Texas-Houston School of Public Health Library. "By introducing the Internet in the workplace, health care workers were able to see the vast health information resources available to them for their own education as health care providers and the education of their patients through consumer-oriented resources."
Review the history
Since the onset of the AIDS epidemic, Houston has ranked among the 10 leading metropolitan statistical areas reporting the highest number of cumulative AIDS cases.1 Several service organizations have sprung up to address such issues as case management, education, prevention, and referral. While the organizations have been successful in providing services, there had been no attempt prior to 1994 to coordinate efforts to retrieve and disseminate prevention and treatment information.
The University of Texas-Health Science Center Houston School of Public Health Library (UTSPH) stepped forward to the task. Library personnel already had experience in training others in accessing health information and had worked with providing HIV information to the Dallas-based AIDS Education and Training Center for Texas and Oklahoma for HIV health care training. With funding from the National Library of Medicine, contributions from member agencies, and donated service from NeoSoft of Houston, a commercial Internet service provider, HAIL was created.
"Each of the organizations participating in the initial proposal had tried at varying levels to satisfy the HIV/AIDS-related information needs of its primary target group, but with little overall success. Further, the restricted financial assets of each agency prevented the acquisition of computer equipment necessary for accessing the Internet," states Stephanie Normann, administrator for information resources at UTSPH. "Although the library’s extensive collection of HIV/AIDS materials had been available on site to the Houston community, what was needed was electronic access from clinics and public libraries within the HIV community."
Working together
A steering committee composed of a representative from each member agency was formed as soon as the first NLM award was made. This group focused the program’s direction, and monthly meetings established significant, beneficial networking between the agencies.
Computers with Internet access were supplied to each member organization, and classes taught in computer basics, Internet access for HIV information, and web site development. HAIL’s web page (www.hailinfo.org) guides users to significant AIDS resources and includes links to member agencies’ home pages. Visitors to the site get not only local information, but also national and global data on HIV/AIDS issues.
For Harris County Hospital District’s Thomas Street Clinic, the HAIL program has made a difference for both patients and providers, says Jeff Benavides, HIV health educator. The facility, the state’s largest HIV/AIDS outpatient clinic, sees approximately 100-150 patients each day.
Providers and patients have been educated about Internet access, which allows all to receive the latest information on HIV/AIDS treatment, says Benavides. The computers have provided a practical resource and are used for a variety of tasks, including the development of the facility’s first newsletter.
Another HAIL agency, the Harris County Sheriff’s Department — Medical Division, would not have an Internet connection without the help of HAIL, notes Normann. Access to up-to-date treatment information is crucial for the agency since the correctional division sees thousands of HIV/AIDS patients each year, she notes. Providers now can access NLM’s databases and other current clinical information, and health educators are able to create newsletters with disease prevention information for their clients from information gleaned from the web, says Normann.
A major milestone was achieved in 2001 when one of HAIL’s member agencies, the Center for AIDS, was awarded its own NLM AIDS community outreach grant, reports Normann. The agency will design curricula to teach clients and service providers how to better access treatment information in tandem with their services. The program, the "AIDS Information Roadshow," will be presented at appropriate locations throughout Houston.
What’s next?
The year 2002 is one of change for the HAIL program, says Normann. The NLM grant officially has ended; the initial grant of $25,000 had grown to $40,000 in the final year. Another change includes the broadening of HAIL’s subject matter to include information on sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and other health and social well-being information important to the affected community. A continuing need is education and training on accessing and evaluating scientifically accurate, culturally sensitive health and wellness information from various sources on the Internet; the intent is to continue this service both at member agency sites and UTSPH, states Normann.
"HAIL is a volunteer organization, but after six years, it has a track record and a number of caring individuals at each of the HAIL agencies who want to continue the collaborative efforts of the organization," says Normann. "I think we can make it happen."
Reference
- Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report 2000; 12.
Resources
For more information on HAIL, contact:
- Stephanie Normann or Jeff Meyer, University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, School of Public Health, P.O. Box 20186, Houston, TX 77225. Telephone: (713) 500-9127 (Normann); (713) 500-9126 (Meyer). Fax: (713) 500-9125. E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]. Web: www.hailinfo.org.
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