Community-Based Multi-Service Programs

Community Service Programs (CSP)

Program Description

In response to the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in New York State, the Community Service Programs (CSPs) were established in 1984 to serve as the first community-based organizations dedicated to providing:

  • a comprehensive array of HIV/AIDS specific prevention interventions and client services for HIV infected and affected individuals within a clearly defined geographic area;
  • training and technical assistance to local health and human service providers to assist in program and organizational development activities;
  • a service delivery system responsive to those with HIV and those at risk; and
  • leadership in developing a comprehensive regional program that identifies changing and emerging needs and addresses gaps in service.

CSPs are an important part of the HIV service continuum in New York State. There are fourteen CSPs, each with a continuum of services designed to meet HIV prevention and client service needs of HIV infected and affected individuals. The services provided by the CSPs include:

  • outreach activities that engage individuals most at risk for HIV, those who are HIV infected and not currently engaged in health care, and those who do not yet know their HIV status;
  • individual and group level interventions that are designed using science or evidence-based risk reduction strategies, include a skills-building component, and offer support for long-term behavior change;
  • health communication and public information interventions that deliver HIV prevention messages and promote HIV programs and community events to increase awareness, build general support for safe behaviors and support personal risk reduction efforts;
  • community-level interventions that influence community norms, attitudes and practices in support of reducing risk behaviors;
  • case management that assists clients in receiving timely coordinated services; support services, including treatment adherence education, housing assistance, transportation, support groups, counseling, legal advocacy, emergency assistance, provision of food/meals;
  • support services to affected family members including bereavement counseling and support groups; and
  • referrals to services not provided directly by the CSP, including HIV counseling, testing and partner notification; primary care; AIDS Adult Day Health Care; permanency planning; food and clothing; respite care; and other services needed by the client.

CSPs have a regional approach to service delivery through satellite service delivery sites, collaboration with local health units, local governments, businesses, and other community-based organizations. They are designed to be accessible and responsive to the needs of the diverse populations and subpopulations most impacted by HIV/AIDS. CSPs facilitate early access to HIV prevention and the continuum of care for people infected and affected by HIV, including those who might not seek services until they become severely ill.

Funding

Community Service Programs receive approximately $19.6 million in State Aid-to-Localities funding through the New York State Budget. Many CSPs have also successfully competed for funding through other AIDS Institute initiatives and other fenders for services including peer prevention services, transportation, gay/lesbian/transgender prevention services, case management, adolescent prevention services, nutritional support, housing referral and placement, treatment education, mental health counseling, and criminal justice services.

Contact:

Bureau of Community Based Services
Division of HIV Prevention
(518) 486-1412

Multiple Service Agencies (MSA)

Program Description

The Multiple Service Agency Initiative (MSA) was established in response to the disproportionate impact of HIV in New York's communities of color. As of March 2003, 77.3% of all New York residents diagnosed with AIDS were people of color (including African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian/Pacific Islanders and multi-racial persons). Among AIDS cases diagnosed in 2002, New York State's people of color accounted for 90% of cases among women, 80% of pediatric cases, and 87% of cases diagnosed among injection drug users. People of color have accounted for the majority of AIDS cases in New York since the 1980s.

The AIDS Institute established the Multiple Service Agency (MSA) Initiative in 1992, in recognition of the strong role that community-based agencies have had in successfully reaching communities of color. MSA funding enables existing community-based organizations serving communities of color to expand their service capacity to provide HIV-related services. Funding assists contractors in developing agency infrastructure to support the delivery of HIV prevention and service programs including prevention and risk reduction education, peer programs, and case management. Funding also assists contractors in developing a coordinated community response to the HIV/AIDS-related needs of people of color.
Organizations eligible for MSA funding must:

  • serve communities of color;
  • operate in areas with high concentrations of the target population(s);
  • provide services that are culturally sensitive and appropriate;
  • and have boards of directors and staff who are representative of the target population(s).

MSAs were developed to target disproportionately affected communities with the highest rates of and risks for HIV infection. Currently, thirty-four MSAs provide services to reach African Americans, Hispanics, Asians and Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, Caribbean women, high-risk youth, homeless men and women living on the street or in shelters, men who have sex with men, people who identify as transgender, and other populations that might not readily access the traditional service delivery/care systems.

The MSAs use an incremental approach to program development. Over a period of three years, the agencies initiated or expanded HIV-related services that address the model's three components: outreach/prevention interventions, client services, and program development. For consumers, the MSAs provide "one-stop shopping," thereby promoting easy access to a variety of HIV-related services and timely referrals to other agencies for services not directly provided.

Services provided by the MSAs include:

  • outreach activities that engage individuals most at risk for HIV, those who are HIV infected and not currently engaged in health care, and those who do not yet know their HIV status;
  • individual and group level interventions that are designed using science or evidence-based risk reduction strategies, include a skills-building component, and offer support for long-term behavior change;
  • health communication and public information interventions that deliver HIV prevention messages and promote HIV programs and community events to increase awareness, build general support for safe behaviors, and support personal risk reduction efforts;
  • community level interventions that influence community norms, attitudes, and practices in support of reducing risk behaviors; and
  • program development and capacity-building activities that support the overall organizational structure and directly support the design, implementation, and evaluation of HIV prevention interventions.

Funding

MSAs are supported through a State appropriation of approximately $12 million.

Contact:

Bureau of Community Based Services
Division of HIV Prevention
(518) 486-1412