Capacity Building Workshop
Arkansas Minority Health Commission in collaboration with the HIV/AIDS Prevention Coalition and the Arkansas Department of Health hosted the workshop, “Building Communities for HIV Prevention”.
The workshop was held on June 16, 2008 at the Ramada Plaza in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Over 40 participants from various community based organizations, AIDS service organizations and faith based organizations in Arkansas attended.
Each participant had the option of selecting between 2 workshops to attend for the morning session as well as the afternoon session. The workshops included:
- HIV 101 and Community Needs Assessment: These workshops were conducted by Ernest Perez with the Border Health Foundation. HIV 101 focused on increasing the basic knowledge of HIV/AIDS and other associated problems. Participants also received information about analyzing basic information, core messages, values and practices related to HIV/AIDS prevention and education and the importance of cultivating a caring and supportive attitude toward individuals living with HIV/AIDS. In the community needs assessment workshop participants learned the process of obtaining and analyzing findings using multiple data collection methods.
- Program Planning and Evaluation: These workshops were conducted by Louis Henry with the Dallas Prevention Training Center. The program planning workshop discussed the process and importance of program planning. Participants were able to identify the benefits of using the logic model and it’s components as it relates to program planning. In the evaluation workshop participants learned the importance of developing an evaluation tool for programs and the relationship between program planning and evaluation.
The workshop concluded with an overview by Venus Dukes with the Dallas Prevention Training Center. Ms. Dukes discussed the Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions (DEBI) which are science-based interventions that are strongly recommended by CDC as effective HIV prevention programs (http://www.effectiveinterventions.org/). Some of the specific programs discussed included: SISTA, Healthy Relationships, CLEAR (Choosing Life: Empowerment! ACTION! RESULTS! ) and Respect.
It is our goal to provide technical assistance and support capacity building of community-based organization to address minority health. We have started a great work in addressing HIV/AIDS in our communities but have a much greater work to do. As with any new endeavor, we must first start with a solid foundation. It is that foundation that allows us to build up and out. The Capacity Building Workshop serves as a first step to moving to the next level in HIV/AIDS Prevention in Arkansas.
Patricia Minor, RN
Project Manager
Hypertension Initiative
HIV/AIDS Outreach Initiative
