Serving Individuals living with HIV/AIDS

There are more than 4,000 identified cases of individuals living with HIV/AIDS in Cuyahoga County. Nationally, 0.4% of the general population are HIV positive, while 3.4% of the homeless population is estimated to be HIV positive. As a community health center focused on health care for the homeless, Care Alliance is appropriately positioned to care for this population.

Since 2000, Care Alliance has offered health care and supportive services to meet the unique needs of individuals who are HIV positive or living with AIDS and experiencing extreme poverty.  Funding for this program is provided primarily through the Ryan White Care Act under the leadership of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, HIV/AIDS Bureau.

While a major focus of Care Alliance’s Ryan White Program is to provide care to individuals whose status is known, we also test individuals whose status is unknown for HIV throughout the community and help those who have fallen out of care return to a medical provider. Roughly 30 percent of the HIV-positive population in Cleveland is not currently receiving HIV-related health care.

Click here for more information on the services offered through our Ryan White programs including HIV testing locations and hours.

The ATLAS Program

In the fall of 2007, Care Alliance was awarded a grant through the HIV/AIDS Bureau as one of ten sites nationwide to pilot a “Special Project of National Significance;” (SPNS) establishing and evaluating an HIV testing and linkage program for incarcerated individuals. At Care Alliance, this program is located at the Cuyahoga County Corrections Center and is called the ATLAS Program: Assess, Test, Link: Achieve Success.

As this program enters into its fifth and final year, the major activities have shifted from enrollment and research to analysis and eventual distribution of findings. During this transition, the ATLAS Team continues to collaborate closely with the Ryan White Team to ensure that patients within the jail setting are able to access primary care and case management services at Care Alliance while in jail and upon their release.

Visit the Enhancing Linkages to HIV Primary Care and Services in Jail Settings Initiative website for more information.