Webinar #1.

Title:  Supporting Alcohol Reduction in HIV Patients

About the Presenter:  Dr. Shiela M. Strauss, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the NYU College of Nursing and serves as Co-Director of the Statistics and Data Analysis Core at NYU’s Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing.

Webinar Description:  This One (1) hour presentation was recorded on November 21st., 2011., and introduces HIV Care Providers to an important but overlooked opportunity to support their patients: alcohol screening and brief intervention.  Advocated by the National Institutes of Health and using guidelines that they created for clinicians, participants will have an opportunity to practice this screening and observe a brief intervention. Strategies for implementing this approach will be described.

Video:  Supporting Alcohol Reduction in HIV Patients

Educational Goals: 

• To introduce participants to the AUDIT.
• To state the importance of supporting alcohol reduction in patients with HIV.
• To use and score a brief alcohol use screener.
• To list barriers to implementing alcohol screenings and brief interventions with clients.
• To list strategies to help patients reduce their alcohol use.

Overall Course Goals:

1. To encourage and enhance HIV Care Providers’ abilities to implement the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism’s Brief Alcohol  Intervention (NIAAA’s BI).
2. To increase HIV Care Providers’ knowledge and attitudes about brief interventions.

Session & Educational Objectives:  At the end of the webinar, participants will be able to:

1. Describe what constitutes unhealthy alcohol use in HIV patients and the harm that it can cause.
2. Describe why it is important for HIV Care Providers to support their patients' alcohol reduction.
3. Learn how to use and score a brief alcohol use screener and to assess alcohol use disorders.
4. Describe important steps in following up with patients with alcohol use disorders through brief alcohol reduction interventions.
5. Describe what HIV Care Providers are currently doing to support their patients' alcohol reduction.
6. Describe what makes it difficult and what makes it easier to implement alcohol screening and brief interventions with HIV patients.
7. Describe important steps that HIV Care Providers can take now and in the future to help their patients reduce their alcohol use.

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Webinar #2. 

Title:  Saying Safe:  Training Injection Drug Users in Strategies to avoid HCV and HIV Infection

About the Presenter:  Dr. Pedro Mateu-Gelabert is a sociologist specializing in urban ethnography with extensive experience doing qualitative research in New York City and collaborating with international researchers.

Webinar Description:  This One (1) hour presentation was recorded on November 16th., 2011. “Staying Safe” is a new strengths-based intervention to facilitate long-term prevention of HIV and HCV among young IDUs. Dr. Mateu-Gelabert will present the results of a pilot study whose participants reported large statistically significant increases in long-term risk avoidance practices and reductions in risky behaviors.

Video:  Training Injection Drug Users in Strategies to avoid HCV and HIV Infection

Overall Course Goals:  Increase knowledge about “Staying Safe", a program to facilitate long-term prevention of HIV and HCV among young Injection Drug Users (IDUs).

Objectives:  At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

1.  Describe the “Staying Safe” project.
2.  List at least 5 strategies for injection drug users to avoid stigma.
3.  List 2 ways to avoid problems with drug withdrawal.
4.  State 3 long-term strategies that people who inject drugs can use to inject safely.