Packing Parties Every Tuesday at Motley

Help us Keep DC Safer! Join the HIV Working Group every Tuesday Night at Motley Bar for Packing Parties. Volunteers assemble safer sex kits and enjoy great drink specials at Motley from 7:00 PM to 10:30 PM.

Motley is the upstairs bar at EFN Lounge, located at 1318 9th St NW (9th St Between N and O). Have fun, volunteer, and enjoy great drink specials.

The DC Center HIV Working Group focuses on HIV prevention for gay, bisexual, and transgender (GBT) men in the District of Columbia. For more information, visit the HIV Working Group Page.

CAVE Meeting November 11th

The next CAVE meeting will take place November 11th at 7:00 PM at the DC Center, 1111 14th Street NW Suite 350. Our meetings normally take place the second Wednesday of each month. The meeting will include a mini-presentation and discussion on The Role of Community Advisory Board Members. We will also be finalizing our plans for World AIDS Day. Please join us!

CAVE (www.aidsvaccine.org) is the community advisory board for the Vaccine Research Center. Capital Area Vaccine Effort is a volunteer panel of individuals from the general public and from the diverse communities affected by AIDS. CAVE is organized to assist and advise AIDS vaccine trials in the metropolitan DC area by:

• Assessing the concerns and serving as an advocate for AIDS vaccine participants and the general public.
• Acting as a liaison & ombudsman between AID vaccine researchers and those interested in AIDS vaccine research.
• Reflecting affected populations in its own composition.As appropriate, encouraging participation in AIDS Vaccine Trials, and acting as community educators on AIDS vaccine research
• Assessing ethical and social implications & impact of the AIDS Vaccine Trials

Washington Blade Profiles Activist & Center Board Member Pat Hawkins

Dr. Pat Hawkins is featured in the Washington Blade Queery Column this week. Dr. Hawkins serves on the Board of Directors of The DC Center.

It’s been a year of change and transition for Pat Hawkins, one of the Rainbow History pioneers being honored this month. She was laid off Dec. 31 after nearly 20 years at Whitman-Walker Clinic where she worked as a psychotherapist. She spent most of the year consulting, doing private practice and working on getting the Ryan White act reauthorized. She was approached by Peter Metasatos to start a new venture, the D.C. Community AIDS Network, where she’ll work as a psychotherapist and behavioral health consultant. Hawkins, 69, says there are so many pressing needs facing D.C.’s HIV-positive residents, there’s room for many service organizations. “So many with HIV and AIDS are not receiving care,” she says.

continue reading this article on the Washington Blade website

Packing Party October 13th

Help us Keep DC Safer! Join members of the HIV Working Group on Tuesday, October 13th at Motley Bar for another Packing Party. Volunteers will be assembling safer sex kits and enjoying great drink specials at Motley. 7:00 PM to 10:30 PM.

Motley is the upstairs bar at EFN Lounge, located at 1318 9th St NW (9th St Between N and O). Have fun, volunteer, and enjoy great drink specials.

The DC Center HIV Working Group focuses on HIV prevention for gay, bisexual, and transgender (GBT) men in the District of Columbia. For more information, visit the HIV Working Group Page.

October Stakeholder Conference Call
State Budget Cuts: Is California Our Future?
Tuesday, Oct 20th @ 1:00 PM (Eastern)/10:00 AM (Pacific)

Our October call will be on “State Budget Cuts: Is California Our Future?” Please join us on Tuesday, Oct. 20th at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern)/10:00 a.m. (Pacific). The call in number is 1-605-475-6333; code: 481162. You may e-mail your questions to info@nmac.org or send them through Twitter: http://twitter.com/NMACCommunity

We will be joined by Anne Donnelly, from Project Inform; Julie Cross, a Health and Disability Policy Consultant; and Julie Scofield or Laura Hanen from the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD) who has done a summary of all 50 states and their HIV/AIDS state budgets.

Volunteer Opportunity: HPCPG Seeks New Members

The DC HIV Prevention Community Planning Group is looking for volunteers to help the DC Department of Health stop the HIV epidemic in the District. The group’s goal is to develop a comprehensive HIV Prevention Plan for the District.

The HPCPG is comprised of a diverse group of community members from different racial/ethnic, gender and age groups who represent the perspectives of the groups most affected by the epidemic, including injection drug users, heterosexuals and men who have sex with men,

The group includes individuals with expertise in behavioral science, epidemiology and evaluation, as well as individuals with knowledge of the HIV prevention needs of District residents. Approximately 20 percent of the members are people living with HIV.

The group meets approximately 8 times a year. Members serve 2-year terms.

We are seeking individuals who can represent the perspectives of various risk groups, either because they identify with or can advocate for these groups, including youth (men and women 13-24), PLWH, Black MSM, Black male IDUs, Black heterosexual men and women, and transgender women.

The HPCPG is also seeking behavioral scientists, epidemiologists and evaluators.

Applications may be submitted until October 26, 2009.

To obtain an electronic copy of the application or for additional information please e-mail donald.babb@dc.gov.

Free Training: Everything You Wanted To Know about STIs (Sexually Transmitted Infections) But Were Afraid To Ask

Free Training: Everything You Wanted To Know about STIs (Sexually Transmitted Infections) But Were Afraid To Ask
Thursday, October 15th 10am-4pm
Prevention Works!
2501 Benning Rd NE

We are very fortunate to have Melissa Sellevaag (Coordinator of Education, Training and Outreach at the DOH’s Bureau of Bureau of Sexually Transmitted Disease Control) facilitating this meeting! During this training you will learn all about the symptoms (or lack thereof), transmission, testing and treatment of those STIs that are sometimes overlooked because of our focus on HIV.

You will even learn how to perform the urine test for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea should you wish to expand your services.

In addition you will learn about:
Common misconceptions about STIs among health care providers
How to talk to your patients/clients about STIs
The relationship between STIs and HIV
What’s going on with STIs in DC
Resources for testing and treatment in DC
What the Bureau is up to and how they can help you
How to become more involved, expand, or improve your current service offerings

If you are interested in participating, please send an email to Mary Beth Levin (mailto:mlevin@preventionworksdc.org)%20to%20reserve a space.

HIV Working Group Meeting: Focus on HIV/AIDS Clinical Trials

The next meeting of The DC Center's HIV Working Group takes place Wednesday October 28th at 7:00 PM at The DC Center, 1111 14th St NW Suite 350.

This months meeting will include a presentation on HIV/AIDS Clinical Trials taking place in the District of Columbia. Participants will get an overview of what type of HIV/AIDS trials are happening in our area and how to find out about them. We'll also discuss how to decide whether or not a trial is right for you, and how community members have input into the research process.

The HIV Working Group focuses on HIV prevention for gay, bisexual, and transgender (GBT) men in the District of Columbia. The group normally meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month.