NCJ Number
199156
Journal
Public Health Reports Volume: 117 Issue: 1 Dated: 2002 Pages: S96-S103
Date Published
2002
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article presents data concerning HIV and AIDS among the Native American population and presents a model for effective intervention programs.
Abstract
The authors explain that the increase in new AIDS diagnoses has slowed down since 1992, to less than a 5 percent increase per year. However, this slowdown in new diagnoses does not extend to Native Americans. This group experienced an 8 percent increase in new AIDS diagnoses in 1997. In fact, AIDS has become the ninth leading cause of death among Native Americans between the ages of 15 and 44. Moreover, nonwhites accounted for over half of the reported AIDS cases through December 2000. In order to design effective prevention and intervention programs for Native Americans, it is important to identify the risk factors for HIV exposure among this group. Also of importance is a community’s use of collaborative efforts to develop and implement effective programming. The authors present the Community Readiness Model, which assesses a community’s level of readiness to develop and implement appropriate prevention and intervention programs. The Community Readiness Model has been considered a success in various communities and can help in the process of offering holistic prevention and intervention programming for at-risk Native Americans. References