POZ Community Forums
Main Forums => Living With HIV => Topic started by: med forum on February 23, 2007, 06:52:10 am
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Hi all
This may be a chance for some people to vent and for others, an opportunity to really bring an organization to light that has been a huge help......
I'm wondering......for those who have turned to various organizations, health facilities, support groups, etc. do you think they can do a hell of a lot more in terms of helping the HIV/AIDS community? In what way? Is there too much emphasis on one thing and not on another?
What would you change? What would you like to see done to better address your specific needs and/or the specific needs of the community?
Any and all opinions, comments and suggestions are welcome!
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My personal perspective as an Arizonan living in Tucson:
Health care: El Rio Special Immunology Associates.
Theirs is an integrative approach, with five infectious disease physicians and a variety of other support staff (counseling, dietary, nutrition, other allied services.) I appreciate that the infectious disease physicians also serve the role as primary care/internal medicine. I have an excellent doctor and am very favorably impressed with the organization.
ADAP: Arizona ADAP.
They have a very good program in my opinion. Not just antivirals are covered, but a host of other ancillary or adjunct medications as well. For example, they also cover my Lisinopril, Nandrolone, Valium, Reglan, Prilosec, Acyclovir, Lipitor, and Testim.
And, as is not the case with some other states' ADAP, one need not be practically destitute to qualify for the program.
ASO: Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation.
My experience with them currently is that of receiving free dental insurance and limited medication assistance. There are many other programs which I either don't need or for which I don't qualify (counseling, support groups, emergency assistance, housing benefits, food bank, etc.) Their funding has been cut so some programs were curtailed or discontinued. I used to receive free Boost supplement drinks but that was discontinued unfortunately.
A number of guys I've run across who use their services are somewhat disappointed in their quality or lack of service coordination.
Social: Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network.
Their primary service is a monthly luncheon, "Poz Cafe." It's a comfortable place in which to meet others, have a meal, and socialize. I am pleased there is minimal 'attitude' and people are from all spectrums or walks of life. While the menus could use a little improvement (tend to be repetitious and food is at times too spicy for my personal tastes) the meal, after all, is not the primary reason I attend. I'd estimate 60-100 people (most other gay men) attend the lunches. They also provide some short-term financial assistance and care partners for those needing assistance with their functional capacities.
Other social: Some guys have implemented an independent occasional social gathering ("Be Positive...B+") for potlucks and other activities.
I attended the first potluck in October and plan to attend another this week. They had about ten guys in attendance in October. I'm glad I went; I met and made a good friend from it!
So, overall, in my experience, Tucson and Arizona is a good place to live for those of us HIV+.
Gary
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Healthcare: Samuels Clinic for HIV/AIDS in Roosevelt Hospital, NYC. Efficient and top-notch. Minimal waiting times, great referrals to other units within Roosevelt. I treat them as my "2nd ASO" in a sense because my social worker works there and other reasons too. It would be nice if they hired more than 1 psychiatrist. The 1 there is so good that getting an appointment with him is really tough, everyone wants him. The Samuels pharmacy is staffed with cool friendly people and triage too. Wellness/prevention services, internet access
ASO: GMHC, NYC. Superb ASO staffed with seasoned advocates for PWAs and you can even talk with an advocate 1-on-1. Doing so helped me to navigate and cut through much of the red tape of city and state bureaucracy. There's a nutritionist, a yoga teacher, and there are lots of seminars, many of which don't pertain to me (e.g. crystal meth). They've been around since the 1980s and they really know their stuff. That makes me feel protected. But for years I wanted nothing to do with them because of the name GMHC - Gay Men's Health Crisis, as if merely walking into the building meant I was clearly a gay man in a crisis. Wow, can you say ignorance and foolish pride? One minor complaint would be they seem to have a dozen or so interns for every employee so sometimes it's tough to zero in on the most qualified/most knowledgable. I usually just go by someone's age, i.e, "the older ones are gonna tend to know more." Edited to add: GMHC is for anyone with HIV, not just gay men
Edited to add:
Medicaid: I like Medicaid Fee-for-Serivce, also known as "straight Medicaid". If you're poz, beware of "Medicaid CHOICE" and "Medicaid CHOICE SNP". If desired, pozzies can request an exemption form (your doctor must sign it) but of course this clause is nearly impossible to see because it's written all the way at the bottom in teenytiny lettering!!! >:( Any letter you receive in the mail about Medicaid CHOICE should be taken straight to your ASO, advocates, social workers, etc., i.e., do not give in to the strong verbiage in the letter which is nothing more than "fear tactics" >:(
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When I was in Miami... Awesome.
Where I am now.... Shitty.
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University of Cincinnati Medical Center ID department (Holmes Clinic) and Ohio State University Medical Center ID department are great. My ASO is located in Cincinnati, AVOC which is also great. I don't have any complaints. If they don't know an answer to your question, they will find out and always call you back.