The
mission of Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team (APAIT) is to
positively affect the quality of life for Asian and Pacific Islanders
living with or at-risk for HIV/AIDS by providing a continuum of
prevention, health and social services, community leadership and
advocacy to the Southern California region.
Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team (APAIT)
is one of the nation's largest providers of HIV/AIDS prevention and
care services for the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) communities. Based
in Southern California, APAIT has been providing culturally and
linguistically appropriate services to API's since 1987. APAIT delivers
these services through a very dedicated, compassionate and talented
group of individuals.
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 Dear Friend,
What a year it's
been! Despite the economic woes we are all facing this year, APAIT
remains steadfast in delivering quality programs and services to the
most at risk and in need.
We have seen both
incredible growth and challenging setbacks primarily due to the state
budget crisis.
APAIT and many other
AIDS service organizations were hit hard by the Governor's cuts to
the state Office of AIDS ($82 million in total) that has resulted in
the elimination or reduction of several core APAIT and other
AIDS programs including:
Reduced APAIT
Programs:
* Orange County
Prevention Program (60% reduction)
* Case Management
Program (17% reduction)
* Medical Transportation Services
(10% reduction)
* Los Angeles County Prevention Program (3%
reduction)
Other Reduced AIDS
Programs:
* Home Based Case
Management
* Client Advocacy
* Early Intervention Program
*
Service Provider Training
* Residential Care & Treatment
*
Therapeutic Monitoring
Most devastating was
the elimination of the APAIT Treatment Adherence program which
provided our HIV-positive/AIDS clients with a dedicated "Treatment
Advocate." A Treatment Advocate served as a liaison to medical
professionals and empowered clients to make appropriate HIV treatment
decisions. The program had been a part of APAIT since 1995.
Other ELIMINATED
state programs as a result of the cuts include:
* Legal Services
*
Medical Nutrition Therapy
* Peer Support
* Service Provider
Training
* Service Capacity Building
These cuts along
with a handful of other public federal funded programs that ended
this fiscal year has resulted in the reduction of nearly $320,000
in APAIT's annual operating budget. This is why we hope you'll
consider extending financial support to APAIT this year to ensure
minimal disruption of critical HIV prevention and treatment services
to our community.
Your donation will
make the difference in shortening or entirely eliminating the client
waiting list for our Case Management program, a vital resource for
AIDS patients to access medical, legal, psychosocial, transportation
and nutrition services. It will make the difference in having a newly
HIV-diagnosed patient access much needed support groups in Orange
County.
Despite the cuts,
APAIT also saw growth in the expansion of several new programs:
TEAM 360 -
an outpatient substance use clinic addressing the rising substance
use epidemic in the community. TEAM 360 offers a six-month intensive
program utilizing the evidenced based treatment intervention - the
Matrix Model. Clients go through sessions that include early recovery
and transition skills, relapse prevention, family education, social
support, individual therapy, relapse analysis, 12-step and other
spiritual group sessions, urine & breath-alcohol testing, and HIV
counseling and testing.
RAPWA (Rental
Assistance for People with AIDS) - provides rental and
utilities assistance to HIV-infected clients who live in Section 8 or
subsidized housing. RAPWA serves to supplement the Housing
Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program that is available
to clients through the Los Angeles Housing Department.
KNOW NOW -
Free and confidential HIV testing for men, women and transgenders
with walk-in hours on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from
12:30pm-8:30pm and weekend hours on Saturday from 10:30am-3:30pm. The
program also offers low-cost STD testing for Chlamydia, Gonorrhea and
Syphilis.
L.E.T.S. Talk
(Learn, Educate, Trust and Support) - first ever HIV+/AIDS
support group for Asians and Pacific Islanders in Orange County held
monthly on Wednesdays from 7-9pm in the OC Satellite office.
In addition to these
new programs, APAIT continues to provide culturally competent and
linguistically appropriate HIV prevention, treatment, training, and
research services.
APAIT also
commemorated its tenth year of community service in Orange County
capped with a luncheon in Westminster in fall 2009 honoring community
partner The Center-OC, media partner Viet Bao News, and tireless
volunteer Chuck DeWitt.
APAIT
programs continue to remain true
to its mission of positively affecting the quality of life for Asians
and Pacific Islanders living with or affected by HIV/AIDS through a
continuum of prevention, health and social services, community
leadership, and advocacy in the Southern California region.
To help
maintain these essential services for our community, we
ask for your help by making a generous tax-deductible donation this
holiday season. As you make your list of people to remember this
year, we ask that you please remember those who are struggling with
HIV stigma. Remember those who may
not have their own family or support system
at a time they need it most.
We also invite you to visit us at our
two offices - in downtown Los Angeles or in the heart of Garden
Grove in Orange County. You may also visit us and DONATE online at
www.apaitonline.org.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Jury Candelario
Division
Director
APAIT Board Member
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Due to extreme
state budget cuts, APAIT terminated its health department-funded
Treatment Adherence program, effective October 15, 2009. We are among a
dozen or so agencies affected by the state budget cuts including, but
not limited to, AIDS Project Los Angeles, Bienestar Human Services,
Minority AIDS Project and Women Alive. The Treatment Adherence
program has been core to APAIT's CARE Unit and we have every
intention of trying to sustain it in the future with pending and
future funding proposals.
The
HIV/AIDS Treatment Education Services at APAIT started in 1995 and
has helped thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS by providing
individual HIV treatment counseling and education on HIV disease
through western and complimentary therapies. I don't have to
tell you how devastating the termination of this program will impact
most of our clients. Our clients make better choices, are more
adherent and more successful on treatment when they meet with a
Treatment Educator. We know that we have clients who are not on
treatment yet or not doing well on treatment. It is our educators
who alleviate their anxieties and motivate them to seek initial
medical care. They also help clients prepare to ask their doctors
the right questions concerning their health.
APAIT will continue
to make every effort, in partnership with other organizations, to
advocate, mobilize and fight this to the end. It is extremely
disappointing that there is little recourse given the state's
financial crisis. The hope that we have is to organize and meet with
state legislators to try to remedy this situation, along with other cuts
to health and human service programs across the state. We will remain
vigilant. I hope you will join me in keeping the flame going.
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With
the financial support from Southern California Edison, Cal National
Bank, and Macy's, APAIT commemorated its 10 Years of Service in
Orange County. A celebration and an awards luncheon was held at
S Restaurant in Westminster, California. Host of Home
Garden TV's "House Hunters" and Equal Rights Activist
Suzanne Whang hosted this year's festivities which drew over 200
people.
The
program highlighted the leadership and dedication of
organizations and individuals that helped make a difference
to APAIT and its work in OC. Honorees included Charles Dewitt of
the Orange County Health Care Agency's REACH program. He
received the "Unsung Hero Award" for his dedication and endless
contributions to the life of our HIV Testing and outreach programs.
The
Center Orange County, an organization serving the lesbian, gay,
transgender, and bisexual community received the "Community Service
Award" for the many years of support via their Life Guard program
and APAIT OC's Turntable program. For more than 5 years, this
collaboration has helped provide successful service linkages and
continuous group support to all of our clients.
Lastly, "Viet
Bao," a Vietnamese newspaper, received this year's Media Award for
covering the Banyan Tree Project, a five-year HIV anti-stigma campaign
funded by the CDC. Quyen Tran, Viet Bao's General Manager, accepted the
"Banyan Tree Project Media Award". Special
Guests and award presenters included Mary Anne Foo,
Executive Director of the Orange County Asian Pacific Islander
Community Alliance, City of Westminster Honorable Mayor Margie
Rice, Miss Garden Grove 2009, and Emmy Award Winner and "Joy
Luck Club" actress Kieu Chinh.
APAIT OC is proud to have reached
this remarkable milestone and we are proud to have developed and
successfully grown new services including our brand new HIV positive
support group, L.E.T.S. Talk in 2008, our LGBT support group
Turntable in 2007 and a west coast regional capacity building
program funded by the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
and prevention in 2004.
As a satellite division of APAIT
that has been severely affected by this year's State Budget
Cuts, APAIT OC remains to acknowledge the need for
culturally-sensitive programs, especially in the area of health and
wellness for Asian and Pacific Islanders (API) in Orange County.
Representing over 16% of the county's population, APIs remain a growing
community in greater Orange County and it is truly with
our volunteers and collaborative organizations that have made
our services possible and available in the last 10 years.
APAIT
OC is the largest HIV/AIDS service provider for the Asian and Pacific
Islander communities of Orange County providing services including
Comprehensive Risk Counseling and Services, HIV/STD Counseling and
Testing, Capacity Building and Technical Assistance, as well as Social
Support Groups. For more information and volunteer opportunities,
please call 714-636-1349 or email at
apaitoc@apaitonline.org.
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Website:
http://www.apaitonline.org
Main Email:
apait@apaitonline.org
Newsletter Email:
newsletter@apaitonline.org
Business Hours:
M-F 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM
L.A. County Office
605 W. Olympic Blvd.
Suite 610
Los Angeles, CA 90015
tel: (213) 553-1830
fax: (213) 553-1833
Orange County Office
12900 Garden Grove Blvd.
Suite 214A
Garden Grove, CA 92843
tel: (714) 636-1349
fax: (714) 636-8828
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