Category HIV Free WV

With World AIDS Day approaching, CEG presented a social media toolkit created in observance of the day and led a discussion on ways CSOs are planning to promote HIV self-testing at their respective World AIDS Day events.

LOST RIVER, W.Va. February 1, 2021 – The Community Education Group (CEG) will be convening a statewide roundtable on the topic of harm reduction in West Virginia on Monday, February 8th, 2021 from 2:00 – 4:00 PM.

This open panel discussion will be moderated by CEG’s Founder & Executive Director, A. Toni Young, and will feature local and state elected officials, private business representatives, public health experts, and harm reduction providers from across the state.


“There are a lot of misconceptions about what ‘harm reduction’ actual is, whom it serves, and the impacts it has on our communities,” said Ms. Young. “After two decades of dealing with the opioid crisis in West Virginia, emotions are fraught and tempers are high. This roundtable is meant to bring all of the stakeholders to the table to come up with some answers and recommendations.”


This roundtable discussion will occur during the regular monthly meeting of the West Virginia Statewide Stakeholders Coalition (WVSSC), a coalition of over 100 individuals, Community-Based Organizations, government agencies and departments, healthcare providers, insurers, and pharmaceutical partners that meets on the second Monday of each month (excluding federal holidays). Each meeting averages between 40-60 attendees, making this one of the best-attended coalitions in West Virginia.


Registration is open to the public, and the WVSSC invites community members, community organizations and businesses, and healthcare providers, alike, to participate in this important roundtable.

Those interested in attending my register using the following link:

https://cutt.ly/JoinWVSSC


All questions for the panelist should be submitted in advance to:


info@communityeducationgroup.org


The Community Education Group (CEG) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization with offices in Lost River, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C., working to eliminate disparities in health outcomes and improve public health in disadvantaged populations and under-served communities

Training Level: Community & Organizational

Thursday, February 4th, 2021 from 2:00 – 3:00 PM Eastern

HIV Basics Learning Objectives:

• Understand what HIV-1 is, how it relates to the immune system, and how it is transmitted

• Review the key terms related to HIV, such as viral load and CD4 count, as well as the difference between HIV and AIDS

• Recognize the urgency to start HIV treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis

• Initiate open, ongoing conversations between patients and healthcare providers.

Presenter:

Trina Scott
Community Liaison
Gilead Sciences

Register today: https://cutt.ly/HIV-Feb2021

SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV (October 19, 2020) – The Community Education Group has launched a new West Virginia Statewide Resource Guide that helps people in the state access resources for HIV, Substance Use Disorder (SUD), and Viral Hepatitis services.

This new digital Resource Guide lets users select their county of residence using an interactive map, which takes them to a dedicated page detailing the providers and organizations available in their area.

“One of the biggest challenges facing West Virginians is not knowing where to go when they’re seeking testing, treatment, or services for HIV, SUD, and Hepatitis,” said A. Toni Young, CEG’s Founder and Executive Director. “With this new guide, CEG is seeking to help West Virginians find the resources they need where they live, as well as to identify gaps in services which will allow us to develop better partnerships and strategies that will expand access to services to fill those gaps.”

The West Virginia Statewide Resource Guide continues to expand and seek input from CEG’s three primary stakeholder groups: Communities, Organizations, and Providers. Users may submit new or overlooked HIV, SUD, Hepatitis, and other resources for inclusion and listing under the appropriate county by filling out a simple form.

Community Education Group (CEG) is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization working to eliminate disparities in health outcomes and improve public health in disadvantaged populations and under-served communities.

Presenters to include NIH and community health leaders
Monday, September 14, 2020

MORGANTOWN, W.VA.: Great strides have been made in recent years in the field of HIV and AIDS prevention and research. On September 29, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. national and community health leaders will be leading a virtual discussion on these advances and challenges that remain in West Virginia communities.

This virtual event will be divided into two segments. The first segment will begin at 11 a.m. and will feature a keynote address by Maureen Goodenow, PhD, who serves as the associate director of AIDS research and the director of the National Institute of AIDS Research. Goodenow will be followed by Ming Lei, PhD, who serves as director of the Division of Research for Capacity Building at the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. Following their remarks, a panel of West Virginia health leaders will weigh in on current research efforts and how they directly affect the Mountain State. In addition to Goodenow and Lei, Judith Feinberg, professor and vice chair of research with the West Virginia University School of Medicine will serve on the panel, with additional panelists to be announced. Attendees will be able to ask questions of the panelists.

At noon, the discussion will turn towards community efforts, led by a panel of health department and community experts who work daily to educate and treat West Virginians with HIV. Confirmed panelists include: Terrence Reidy, MD, MPH, health officer, Berkeley/Morgan and Jefferson Counties Health Departments, Michael Kilkenny, MD, physician director, Cabell Huntington Health Department and Laura Jones, MSW, executive director of Milan Puskar HealthRight. More panelists will be added as they are confirmed.

This event is the first installment of the West Virginia Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s “In Focus” series, which will center around specific health topics in fall 2020. The first session will be hosted in partnership with the Community Education Group, an organization working to foster community engagement in community-based research programs while giving a voice to people whose lives are directly affected by HIV/AIDS and other health crises.

This event is free and open to the public, particularly those involved in clinical care and HIV and AIDS research.

Attendees must RSVP at the event webpage. A link to the ZOOM webinar will be shared one week prior to the event.

CEG has launched a statewide survey for providers and People Who Use/Inject Drugs (PWUD/PWID, respectively) focusing on West Virginia’s 2007 legislative moratorium on opening any new Opioid Treatment Programs in the state.

In 2007, the West Virginia state legislature enacted a legislative moratorium (§16-5Y-12) on the opening of new Opioid Treatment Programs (OTP), halting in place the number of programs that prescribe and dispense Methadone for use in Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) to treat Opioid Use Disorder (OUD).

This moratorium limited the number of OTPs in the state to only 9 sites, statewide, who can legally provide MAT services using Methadone. It also prevents these facilities from opening secondary satellite locations, essentially locking in place where people can seek inpatient or outpatient MAT services using Methadone.

Since the passage of (§16-5Y-12), West Virginia’s opioid addiction crisis has raged out of control, leaving with the highest rate of Drug Overdose Deaths, the highest rate of new Hepatitis A infections, the highest rate of new Hepatitis B infections, and the second-highest rate of new Hepatitis C infections in the United States in 2018. In addition, Injection Drug Use (IDU) of both opioids, and stimulants accounted for 91 (62.3%) of the 146 new HIV infections in West Virginia in 2019.

The survey will gauge awareness of West Virginia’s 2007 Moratorium on the expansion of existing or opening of new Opioid Treatment Programs, as well as attitudes related to West Virginia’s Opioid Addiction Crisis. There are also sections related to Substance Use Disorder (SUD), SUD/OUD Treatment Provision, and the provision of other services that are inextricably linked to West Virginia’s opioid addiction crisis.

This survey takes between 5-30 minutes to complete, depending on how many questions pertain to the person taking this survey. Not every person surveyed will be required to answer every question.

To participate in our survey, either fill out the form, embedded below, or click on the button. Please note: the form scrolls within the page.