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Join Our Mailing ListNorth Jersey AIDS Alliance dba NJCRI
393 Central Avenue
Newark, NJ 07103
Phone: (973) 483-3444
Fax: (973) 485-7080
Email: b.baxter@nucri.org
Title: Partnership Improving Community Health (PICH)
Project Director: Robert C. Baxter
Target Population: Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino
Age Group: Adults
The Partnership Improving Community Health (PICH) project seeks to increase HIV/AIDS awareness, testing, and service utilization. The project’s partnerships consist of North Jersey Community Research Initiative, Newark EMA HIV Health Services Planning Council, Westside Salvation Army, African Methodist Episcopal Church, American Cancer Society, American Health Association/American Stroke Association and the American Diabetes Association. The project focuses on the Greater Newark, New Jersey area consisting of four municipalities in Essex and Union Counties (Newark, East Orange, Irvington, and Elizabeth).
The project targets African-American and Hispanics, adult men and women, ages 21 and older, focusing on injection drug users, men who have sex with men (MSM), and others at-risk for HIV/AIDS. The objectives of the project include: mobilizing partnerships between HIV and non-HIV minority-serving organizations, including churches, to achieve an integrated community-based response to the HIV/AIDS crisis; increasing awareness of health promoting behaviors to prevent HIV/AIDS and other prevalent illnesses through information dissemination; reducing sociocultural and linguistic barriers to HIV/AIDS services; reducing stigmas attached to HIV/AIDS; and increasing the number of organizations and venues where HIV counseling and testing are provided. Activities include identifying health organizations and churches to develop an Advisory Board. Street outreach includes distributing materials on heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and substance abuse. To increase awareness the project provides HIV testing, counseling and treatment including discussions on the ABC Approach at church events, minority colleges, Westside Salvation Army and community events. A Resource Directory on HIV/AIDS and other minority health issues is maintained for use by both consumers and providers. Churches are identified and mobilized in areas where HIV/AIDS is not being addressed for presentations, distribution of educational information and provision of HIV/AIDS services.