Indiana Community AIDS Action Network, Inc.

Summary of Quantitative Data

Training

ICAAN conducted 72 training sessions between October 7, 1994 and December 9, 1995. Training sessions were conducted for a number of reasons, including agency or community outreach, education updates, the teaching of methods and skills, and strengthening client and policy advocacy skills.

• The most common training purpose was legal issues and legal education

• Other common purposes of training sessions included client advocacy, policy advocacy, and the teaching of methods and skills

The primary focus of the prevention education was training for consumers and potential perpetrators of discrimination, such as service providers and employers. Programs for consumers were designed to:

• Increase understanding of the consumer’s legal rights

• To develop basic skills in advocating for their own needs

Trainings targeting employers and medical providers were designed to foster greater understanding of their legal responsibilities towards persons with HIV disease and to promote the development of rational policies addressing HIV-related issues. Training programs for attorneys, care coordinators, and other consumer advocates were designed to:

• Increase skills in recognizing discrimination

• Provide assistance in making referrals to appropriate resources

Trainers

Three trainers facilitated ICAAN’s training sessions. Two of the trainers were male and one was female. All three were Caucasian and ranged in age from 35 to 40 years old. Two of the three trainers were attorneys and all three worked in community-based organizations.

Training Participants

Anywhere from 2 to 130 participants attended the ICAAN training sessions. The sessions were almost evenly distributed between male and female participants and the majority were social services providers. A little more than half of the sessions were attended by service recipients or consumers.

Direct Services

ICAAN provided direct legal advocacy services to 120 individuals. The majority of these individuals were Caucasian (80.8%) and were male (84.2%). The ethnicity of the other participants were African American (17.5%), Latino (0.8%), and Native American (0.8%). Most of the male participants were gay (70.3%) and most of the female participants were heterosexual (88.9%).

Every individual received legal assistance. Issues discussed were:

• Legal problems

• Basic needs/advocacy

• Education

Project staff documented outcomes of the legal services that were provided.

• Over one-third of the legal outcomes were related to client behaviors, such as the client failed to stay in contact, or the client resolved the problem on his/her own

• Almost one-third of the cases were resolved through letter, mediation/arbitration, negotiation or a phone call

• Only a few (1.1%) of the cases needed to be resolved through litigation

Structured Staff Interviews

Interviews were conducted with staff involved in the ICAAN project. Staff had the unique ability to assess the strengths and challenges of the project. Nine staff members were interviewed either in-person or over the telephone. ICAAN staff interviewed included the Executive Director, the Director of Advocacy, an attorney, a Client Advocate and the Intake Coordinator. Representative agencies from the ICAAN SPNS network included the State Department of Health, Indiana Cares, AIDS Task Force, and a consumer representative. A number of program elements were identified as being a key to program success:

• Grass roots organizing efforts

• Involvement with legislation

• Public policy advocacy

• Training and education for consumers

In addition, staff were asked to rate the importance of their program goals to the success of the ICAAN project. Goals important to the success of ICAAN were:

• Encouraging people with HIV to become involved with policies and legislation through grass-roots activities

• Having a committed staff

• Developing and maintaining relationships with policy makers, providers, and representatives of various HIV impacted populations

• Providing training programs for attorneys to expand the legal service delivery network and to establish greater service accessibility within the local community

Effective Program Strategies

Effective strategies used by ICAAN to reduce discriminatory barriers, which prevent persons with HIV disease from receiving a full range of health and human services, were the provision of direct litigation services to consumers and working to change policies and/or legislation. These strategies educated consumers about their legal rights, which in turn provided empowerment and support to the clients. In addition, while reducing discrimination in organizations, they enabled program staff to set up education for the offenders of discrimination.

Most Successful Aspects of the ICAAN Program

Successful aspects of ICAAN’s program included involvement with public policy, training and education for consumers, and the provision of legal services and direct litigation. Through collaboration with policy makers, local government and AIDS services organizations, ICAAN was successfully involved with leading edge issues. In addition, essential components of the program were:

• Educating consumers about their legal rights

• Promoting self-empowerment through knowledge and self-confidence

Due to ICAAN’s employment of two in-house attorneys, the program was also able to provide free legal services and direct litigation to consumers involved in discrimination cases.

Most Challenging Aspects to the ICAAN Program

Challenging aspects of the ICAAN program included the ability to impact the legislative process, dealing with the demands for services which exceeded the capacity of the project, and determining future resources for funding. Other challenges included:

• Educating individuals who are traditionally not receptive to persons with HIV, such as employers and Department of Corrections staff

• Establishing a referral network of lawyers to do pro-bono work

Summary

The Indiana Community AIDS Action Network Project utilized a five-pronged approach, which consisted of prevention education, public policy advocacy, individual advocacy, coalition-building, and grass-roots organizing to reach out to Indiana’s citizens. The program aimed to mobilize and educate consumers to speak with legislators about their issues, to prevent discrimination from occurring by educating potential discriminators such as employers and medical providers, and to assist individuals in redressing discriminatory practices.

The direct legal services provided included legal advice and litigation for needy consumers in order to increase understanding of and enforce their legal rights in different settings. This permitted ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of various legal remedies in comparison to the real life issues confronting individuals facing discrimination due to their HIV status. These comparisons allowed for the identification of laws, regulations and policies in need of refinement or modification to better redress the needs of people with HIV.

• Coalition building included getting consumers involved and bringing HIV service agencies and providers together to deal with discrimination issues

The public policy advocacy component addressed the need for client-centered and community-based leadership. Meetings held between governmental program administrators and policy makers, health and human service providers, consumers and consumer advocates, and other key individuals and entities throughout Indiana fostered ongoing dialogue and consensus building in the design and delivery of prevention, care, research and housing programs for persons with HIV.

• The ICAAN program provided a mechanism to identify, prioritize, and develop strategies to address various HIV-related public policy concerns

• Cases can be resolved without costly litigation, through such activities as letters, mediation, arbitration, negotiation, or phone calls

For Additional Information

The complete report on the Indiana Community AIDS Action Network Project is available by contacting:

The Measurement Group—PROTOTYPES

Evaluation and Dissemination Center

5811A Uplander Way, Culver City, CA 90230

-or-

The Health Resources and Services Administration,

Special Projects of National Significance Program

5600 Fishers Lane, Parklawn Building, Room 7A-08,

Rockville, MD 20857.

This report is also available on the Internet at The Measurement Group web site (www.TheMeasurementGroup.com). Additional reports and presentations are also available.

HRSA/HAB's SPNS Steering

Committee Representatives

1995 – 1996

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (Peter Reis)

Center for Community Health, Education, and Research/Haitian Community AIDS Outreach Project (Eustache Jean-Louis, M.D.)

Center for Women Policy Studies (Leslie R. Wolfe, Ph.D.)

East Boston Neighborhood Health Center (Judith Steinberg, M.D.)

Emory University (Jacqueline Zalumas, Ph.D.)

The Fortune Society (Tracey Gallagher)

Health Initiatives for Youth (Ron Henderson)

Health Resources and Services Administration (Barney Singer, J.D.)

Hektoen Institute for Medical Research/Cook County HIV Primary Care Center (Mary Driscoll, R.N., M.P.H.)

Indiana Community AIDS Action Network (Paul Chase, J.D.)

Interamerican College of Physicians and Surgeons (George Falus, Ph.D.)

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (John G. Bartlett, M.D.)

Larkin Street Services (Anne B. Stanton, M.S.W., C.S.W.)

Michigan Protection and Advocacy Service (Jay Kaplan, J.D.)

Missouri Department of Health (Lawrence P. Thomas, M.S.W.)

New York State Department of Health/Health Research (Humberto Cruz)

Outreach, Inc. (Sandra S. McDonald)

PROTOTYPES (Vivian Brown, Ph.D.)

SUNY–Health Science Center at Brooklyn (Jill Rips, M.A., M.Phil.)

The Measurement Group-PROTOTYPES Evaluation & Dissemination Center (George Huba, Ph.D.)

University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (Donna Anderson, M.P.H., Ph.D.)

University of Mississippi Medical Center (Harold M. Henderson, M.D.)

University of Nevada School of Medicine (Trudy A. Larson, M.D.)

University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (Victor F. German, M.D., Ph.D.)

University of Vermont & State Agricultural College (Christopher J. Grace, M.D.)

University of Washington (Karina K. Udall, M.D., M.P.H.)

Visiting Nurse Association of Los Angeles (David A. Cherin, M.S.W., Ph.D.)

Washington University (Karen Meredith, M.P.H., R.N.)

Well-Being Institute (Geoffrey Smereck, J.D.)