Purpose:
The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to utilize implementation science to develop, implement, and evaluate creative, multidisciplinary approaches to healthcare delivery that more effectively engage and retain individuals in HIV care and treatment so that they achieve durable viral suppression. Research funded under this FOA will support the goals of the DIAGNOSE and TREAT pillars of the Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America (EHE) initiative by seeking to achieve more rapid and sustained viral suppression and improved outcomes for people with HIV through better healthcare engagement.
Background:
The Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America (EHE) initiative, coordinated by the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health, focuses on the four pillars – Diagnose, Treat, Prevent, and Respond – that represent key strategies to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S. For this federal response, NIH is collaborating with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Indian Health Service (IHS), and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to support implementation science research to address the four key pillars of the EHE initiative. Success of the EHE initiative depends on trusted partnerships among local and state health departments, communities, service providers, and research institutions.
Although efficacious HIV treatment regimens are widely available, and new long-acting formulations are now available, the effectiveness of these regimens is only optimized if individuals are engaged in care and treatment, so they achieve HIV viral suppression. More than half of the people with HIV in the United States do not receive regular HIV medical care. Social and structural determinants of health including poverty, stigma, and discrimination combine with factors like mental health and substance abuse and foster inequities in HIV health outcomes. The Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative addresses these inequities by prioritizing efforts in U.S. localities that represent 50% of new HIV infections.
Creative healthcare delivery strategies implemented by multidisciplinary and/or multisectoral teams are imperative to better reach people with HIV who are poorly engaged and failing treatment. This goal recognizes that HIV treatment inequities are attributable to the limitations of the current health care system for serving communities that are highly affected by HIV and other structural and social challenges. Healthcare delivery strategies that better reach and retain those most vulnerable would enhance HIV treatment outcomes, reduce inequities, and help to prevent onward transmission of HIV as well as contribute to a sustainable impact on the U.S. HIV epidemic.
Key Dates:
URL for more information:
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-21-024.html
Filed Under: Funding Opportunities