Fiscal Note
Increase Position Authority by 1.0 FTE
Title
2019 Res-118 Creating a New Project Position to Provide Communicable Disease Follow-up and Syphilis and HIV Partner Services
Body
The HIV Consolidated Contract Grant aims to reduce HIV transmission rates through notification of partners and people at risk for HIV, free HIV testing, assuring all people living with HIV are receiving treatment, referrals for Pre-exposure Prophylactic PrEP, and the early detection and treatment of sexually transmitted infections. Public Health-Madison and Dane County (PHMDC) currently serves a 9 county region through the Partner Services program and manages internet partner services for the entire State of Wisconsin. A small team of Public Health Nurses and Disease Intervention Specialists is currently conducting this work.
In 2019, the WI Department of Health Services on behalf of the Division of Public Health awarded PHMDC $137,000 in additional grant funding to expand this work in alignment with the WI Integrated HIV Prevention and Care Plan. This new grant revenue will support the creation and hiring of a 1.0 FTE bilingual/bicultural Disease Intervention Specialist member to expand work in the areas of Syphilis and HIV partner services throughout a multi-county jurisdiction.
The creation of this position will allow PHMDC to:
-Conduct Syphilis follow up on all new cases to assure timely and appropriate treatment as well as notifying and testing sexual partners of people newly diagnosed with Syphilis.
-Conduct HIV follow up on all new cases to assure timely and appropriate treatment as well as notifying and testing sexual partners of people newly diagnosed with HIV. Improve the PrEP referral process with local providers and offer support services so clients can continue taking PrEP.
-Conduct community outreach for people at risk of contracting Syphilis or HIV. This includes people experiencing housing instability, people who inject drugs, people engaging in commercial or survival sex, high risk heterosexuals, and men who have sex with men.
-Provide syringe exchange services and Narcan for people who inject drugs.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that PHMDC is a local health department statutorily required to provide communicable disease follow-up; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that PHMDC has determined the HIV Consolidated Contract objectives are aligned with health department, city and county goals of reducing communicable disease and that the HIV Consolidated Contract objectives are aligned with health department, city and county goals of protecting the health of the community; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that PHMDC staff has determined that building additional capacity as supported by the HIV Consolidated Contract Grant funding will support the hiring of a full time staff member to expand work in the areas of community engagement, collaborative partnerships and communicable disease follow-up to fulfill HIV grant objectives. In collaboration with program staff and community partners, Public Health will implement and evaluate strategies to reduce the burden of communicable disease in Dane County. The work of this proposed position aligns with the health department, city and county’s goals of improving the health of the community; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that PHMDC has received a total of $137,000 in new HIV Grant funding in 2019 and $42,438 is designated to a DIS position for 2019;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that per the Intergovernmental Agreement Between the City of Madison and Dane County, Public Health employees are employees of Dane County;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED Public Health anticipates that the position will be hired in the third quarter of 2019 and there will be continued funding for 2020.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that upon adoption of this resolution and approval from the Dane County Board, a 1.0 FTE bilingual/bicultural Disease Intervention Specialist will be created in the Public Health Madison and Dane County 2019 Operating Budget and the position be noted in the 2019 Operating Budget to reflect that the continuation of the position is contingent upon continued HIV Grant Funding.