Retention and Re-engagement Committee

The goal of this initiative is to develop systems and programs to increase retention and re-engagement in care and increase viral suppression among people living with HIV in San Francisco. Given our local HIV epidemic, we believe that the following individuals should be a focus of our efforts:

  • Individuals with co-occurring conditions such as homelessness, mental health issues, and substance use that may challenge their ability to consistently engage in HIV care and treatment
  • Youth, African American and Latino men and women, transgender persons, and the uninsured
  • Individuals with a pattern of missed appointments or who begin to miss appointments
  • Individuals who are not virally suppressed, with a priority on people with low CD4 counts and other co-morbidities

Under the leadership and coordination of a steering group, this work will be achieved by:

  • Implementing standards of care for effective retention by providers (e.g., routine update of patient contact information, appointment reminder phone calls, follow-up for missed appointments, check-in calls for high-risk patients, communication with SFDPH surveillance to identify if patients have transferred care or left jurisdiction)
  • Assuring that case managers are playing an active role in assuring medical appointment attendance of their clients, and assuring access by case managers to appointment databases
  • Creating a comprehensive, citywide linkage program to identify patients falling out of care as early as possible and conduct early follow-up
  • Developing a system for better provider-to-provider communication as patients transfer care between clinics and systems of care (public and private)
  • Creating a care navigation hotline to provide assistance to out-of-care clients
  • Coordinating surveillance data and medical records systems to better support providers and clinics to accurately identify and outreach to out-of-care patients
  • Expanding housing, mental health, and substance abuse treatment to support linkage, retention, and re-engagement of patients
  • Conducting program evaluation research to identify successful strategies for retention

Retention & Re-engagement Resources

COVID-19 & Living with HIV: Resources from 4/23 Virtual Town Hall

Last Thursday, Getting to Zero SF and Ward 86 @ SFGH co-hosted a Virtual Town Hall on COVID-19 for people living with HIV. The town hall presenters included Dr. Monica Gandhi from UCSF/SFGH Ward 86, Andy Scheer, LCSW from SF City Clinic, and Bill Hirsh, JD with AIDS Legal Referral Panel. The recording of the…

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HIV & Health Insurance 101 – online training resource

In collaboration with SFDPH’s Center for Learning & Innovation and support from HIV Health Services and Community Health Equity & Promotion via Getting to Zero, the Frontline Organizing Group put together three, online training briefs covering the basics of: Traditional and Expanded Medi-Cal Medicare Private Insurance obtained from an employer or via Covered CA The…

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Retention News & Updates

HIV & Health Insurance 101 – online training resource

In collaboration with SFDPH’s Center for Learning & Innovation and support from HIV Health Services and Community Health Equity & Promotion via Getting to Zero, the Frontline Organizing Group put together three, online training briefs covering the basics of: Traditional and Expanded Medi-Cal Medicare Private Insurance obtained from an employer or via Covered CA The…

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