Staff from the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) will share best practices in HIV prevention policy and research at the 2011 National HIV Prevention Conference in Atlanta, August 14-17, 2011. Convened by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the biannual conference gathers thousands of researchers, public health officials, and advocates to share the latest findings in science, policy, and practice to curb the rate of new HIV infections in the U.S.
AFC will showcase several of its cutting-edge initiatives during the four day conference, including the preliminary findings of a new research project tracking the attitudes and beliefs of HIV-positive individuals seeking HIV-related services. The preliminary findings have application on an array of strategies designed to help HIV-positive people gain early access to continuous and high-quality HIV-related care.
AFC’s HIV Prevention Justice Alliance (HIV PJA) will host an array of workshops, sessions, and activities 
for HIV prevention advocates and allies dedicated to eradication of social drivers that elevate risk for HIV acquisition, such as mass incarceration, LGBTQ marginalization, and poverty.
In other sessions, AFC will present on its female condom education campaign called Ringonit.org and host a discussion about HIV treatments as primary prevention as part of its Mapping Pathways project.
To coincide with the conference, AFC is releasing its Public Health Research guide, published as part of the WithInSight series sponsored by Bristol-Myers Squibb. In Chicago, AFC is also launching its new health-promotion social marketing campaign called ChangeMyStory.org. The campaign includes bus shelter ads in seven focus communities on the Southside as well as an information website on HIV and other health topics relevant to the African-American community.
For a full listing of AFC sessions occurring at the 2011 National HIV Prevention Conference please download the schedule .
