Nutrition Security for People with HIV: Implementation Technical Assistance Provider

This announcement solicits applications for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC) National Coordinating Resource Center (NCRC) Cooperative Agreement.  This HRSA award will fund one entity to serve as the national coordinating resource center charged with 1) coordinating the development and dissemination of national HIV curricula for health care professionals that is national in scope; 2) supporting the technical assistance work of the HAB and all AETC program grantees; 3) serving as the central repository for AETC developed training and capacity development materials;  and 4) disseminating technical assistance trainings and capacity development products to health care professionals nationwide using virtual and in-person meetings and conferences.  The AETC NCRC supports the goals of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS),[1] HIV Care Continuum Initiative,[2] the Affordable Care Act,[3] and the Minority AIDS Initiative, primarily by its support of the Regional AETCs (concurrent competitive funding oppoprtunity announcement HRSA-15-032) and other entities in the AETC network.  The goals of the Regional AETCs are to:       1.    Increase the size and strengthen the skills of the current and novice HIV clinical workforce in the United States; 2.    Improve outcomes along the HIV Care Continuum, including diagnosis, linkage, retention and viral suppression, in alignment with the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, through training and technical assistance; and 3.    Reduce HIV incidence by improving the achievement and maintenance of viral load suppression of PLWH. 1.      The AETC NCRC will achieve its goals by using the following strategies:The AETC NCRC will coordinate the development and dissemination of a national HIV curriculum for health care professionals, including interprofessional teams, who care for people living with HIV (PLWH) or those at risk.  This includes providing technical assistance on practice transformation and change management to the AETC network. 2.    The AETC NCRC will create and promote the AETC Program brand nationally as an HIV education and training resource and serve as the central repository for all AETC developed training resources.  3.    The AETC NCRC target audience includes all of the AETC program grantees, subgrantees and regional partners, reached primarily through the use of various web-based technologies.  The AETC NCRC will also manage knowledge centers, working groups, and communities of practice among the AETC network.  In this way, the AETC NCRC will focus its efforts on experienced HIV health care professionals and trainers. 4.    The AETC NCRC will take the lead in planning and coordinating in-person and virtual clinical trainings for RWHAP grantees and providers, working closely with the HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau and its grantees and service providers to assure dissemination of HIV treatment advances, new service delivery approaches and strategies to address the needs of a demographically diverse population affected by HIV. 5.    The AETC NCRC will provide technical expertise on distance-based learning and new media to the AETC network. 6.    The AETC NCRC will build and maintain strategic collaborations with the AETC Network, federal, state and national organizations.  7.    The AETC NCRC will be expected to evaluate the quality of its work and demonstrate impact, in alignment with the National HIV/AIDS Strategy and HIV Care Continuum. [1] Office of National AIDS Policy. National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States.  The White House, ONAP, July 2010. Available from: http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/NHAS.pdf.   [2] The White House, Office of the Press Secretary.  Executive Order ¿ HIV Care Continuum Initiative.  http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/07/15/executive-order-hiv-care-continuum-initiative, accessed September 26, 2014. [3] Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, 111th Congress, H.R. 3590 (2010).  http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-111publ148/content-detail.html, accessed September 26, 2014.