Positive People Network, Inc's March In Washington

Positive People Network Services and Descriptions

● Health Education- The purpose of health education is to positively influence the health behavior of individuals and communities.

 1. Monthly Workshops/Webinars will be held on all health disparities that affects all cultures. Professionals, Nurse Practitioners, Specialist, etc., will deliver current up- to-date and accurate information. The educational workshops vary from, one session per subject to a series on one subject to assure the audience has an understanding on subject, so that better decisions and use prevention measures, if possible.

 2. PPN Disclosure Support for individuals who HIV+. We tend to use the word "normalization" a lot when talking about HIV. It is meant to reflect the fact that people with HIV can now not only have a normal quality of life, but they can also plan for the future, have kids, and carry on healthy sexual relationships if provided with the proper treatment and a few preventive guidelines.

 3. HIV 101/104 Courses- Schedules and Registration will be announced and conducted through The Miami- Dade Department of Health, CDC and related Online Courses.

4. U=U means Undetectable = Untransmittable- U=U means that people with HIV who achieve and maintain an undetectable viral load—the amount of HIV in the blood—by taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) daily as prescribed cannot sexually transmit the virus to others. Thus, treatment for HIV is a powerful arrow in the quiver of HIV prevention tools.

● Empowerment means the process of becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling one's life and claiming one's rights.

1. Advocacy Trainings and Support- Advocacy is an activity by an individual or group that aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to influence public policy, laws and budgets by using facts, their relationships, the media, and messaging to educate government officials and the public. Advocacy can include many activities that a person or organization undertakes including media campaigns, public speaking, commissioning and publishing research. Lobbying (often by lobby groups) is a form of advocacy where a direct approach is made to legislators on a specific issue or specific piece of legislation. Research has started to address how advocacy groups in the United States and Canada are using social media to facilitate civic engagement and collective action.

2. Weekly Support Groups- In a support group, members provide each other with various types of help, usually nonprofessional and nonmaterial, for a particular shared, usually burdensome, characteristic. Members with the same issues can come together for sharing coping strategies, to feel more empowered and for a sense of community. The help may take the form of providing and evaluating relevant information, relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others' experiences, providing sympathetic understanding and establishing social networks. A support group may also work to inform the public or engage in advocacy.

 3. Youth Support services are targeted specifically at young people aged 8 to 21 years of age who are at risk of: ● disconnection from their family/community/support networks ● disengagement from school, training and/or employment ● harm, including self-harm ● homelessness ● sex trafficking/prostitution ● HIV and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases/Infections

 4. My Sister’s Keeper- to educate the community and assist women with unmet needs, meaning a need that is not satisfied or fulfilled.

5. PPN MSM Support Group- Connecting those at risk, undiagnosed, and or known to be living with HIV infection, for Men who have sex with men (MSM) who are HIV positive or who are at high risk for contracting HIV.

6. PPN LGBTQ+/Transparent- Transgender, often shortened as trans, is also an umbrella term. In addition to including people whose gender identity is the opposite of their assigned sex (trans men and trans women), it may include people who are not exclusively masculine or feminine (people who are non-binary or genderqueer, including bigender, pangender, genderfluid, or agender). Other definitions of transgender also include people who belong to a third gender, or else conceptualize transgender people as a third gender. The term transgender may be defined very broadly to include cross-dressers. Being transgender is independent of sexual orientation. Transgender people may identify as heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, asexual, or may decline to label their sexual orientation. The term transgender is also distinguished from intersex, a term that describes people born with physical sex characteristics "that do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies". The opposite of transgender is cisgender, which describes persons whose gender identity or expression matches their assigned sex. The degree to which individuals feel genuine, authentic, and comfortable within their external appearance and accept their genuine identity has been called transgender congruence. Many transgender people experience gender dysphoria, and some seek medical treatments such as hormone replacement therapy, sex reassignment surgery, or psychotherapy. Not all transgender people desire these treatments, and some cannot undergo them for financial or medical reasons.

7. HIV and Aging- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), of the estimated 1.1 million people with HIV in the U.S. in 2018, approximately 400,000 (36%) were aged 55 and older. In addition, people aged 50 and older accounted for 17% of the 37,968 new HIV diagnoses in 2018 in the United States and 6 dependent areas. From 2014 to 2018, HIV diagnoses decreased 6% overall among people aged 50 and older, with trends varying by sex and transmission category.

● Prevention- in this sense means we will educate and empower the community and individuals as a mission to stop the epidemic of HIV, Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, STI’s, and any all-health disparities especially in the community of color.

1. Medication Adherence Counseling- Partnership 4 Health is a scientific based intervention created by the CDC for individuals living with HIV and high -risk negatives (PrEP/PEP). P4H is an Intervention that counsel individuals one on one, in a safe and confidential atmosphere.

 2. PrEP and PEP- Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) PrEP is a prevention method used by people who are HIV-negative and at high risk for being exposed to HIV through sexual contact or injection drug use. When someone is exposed to HIV through sex or injection drug use, these medicines can work to keep the virus from establishing an infection.

3. Community Awareness Events- The goal of community awareness is to increase the community’s knowledge of the available programs and services offered. This is accomplished by informing the general public through various activities.

4. PPN Men- A support group for heterosexual men to support and have a brotherhood. A group where they can be heard and have a place to call their own. Educate each other, Learn from each other and be a service to our community.

 5. PrEP- Up - A funded program to help Cis-Gender Black Women by educating them on PrEP, sisterhood, self-love, empowerment, reproductive health, body autonomy, being better mothers, being better wives, healthy -vs-unhealthy relationships, entrepreneurialism, and being supported by your sisters.