Healing Conversations for Men Who Have Sex with Men The Intersection of HIV and Drug Use with Graham Harriman
Graham Harriman is a long term HIV survivor and Director of the Care and Treatment Program in the Bureau of HIV Prevention and Control at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Graham serves as the NY EMA Program Director, the largest EMA in the nation. Graham’s work in the field of HIV began over 29 years ago as a mental health therapist in an integrated medical clinic serving low-income people living with HIV and AIDS and has worked in public health for over 15 years. Graham describes his duties as a Director in the Bureau of HIV in NY, speaks about the efforts available in the Care and Treatment Program, and what he sees in the intersection of HIV and drug use in New York.
TAKEAWAYS:
[2:12] Graham oversees the Ryan White Program, a status neutral program for those that want to access PrEP, or the Undetectables Program and programs for MSM or transgender individualswho use methamphetamines.
[4:30] We have seen an increase of meth use in men of color and Latino men since 2014.
[5:26] The program addresses the needs of MSM of color and transgender individuals through a combination of different services. These include health education, medical services including vaccinations and screenings, and social benefits and entitlements such as housing, food and health insurance.
[8:31] The model is a status neutral harm reduction program that leverages the Ryan White funding to address the needs of people who are HIV positive and meth users. The goals of the program include promoting and providing easily accessible harm reduction based substance use treatment, medical care, and reducing negative health impacts through services.
[10:02] They use a harm reduction approach to maximize engagement with persons who are using meth because they know only a portion of the users are ready or interested in engaging in substance use treatment. The harm reduction model helps us have a population based approach to prevent new infections and focuses on reducing negative harms associated with meth use.
[12:53] They are a one-stop shop and judgement free zone for mental health, sexual health and substance abuse information.
[13:42] It seems like they are reaching the right folks. Out of the 271 clients that are fully
enrolled, 97% are male and 66% are under the age of 40. More than half the clients are MSM of color, and the majority are smoking meth and half of them are injecting meth. 40% of the people in the program are HIV negative and 60% are HIV negative.
[15:13] Peer engagement makes all the difference in the world, and many people have stayed with the program to offer support and help others through education and outreach.
[17:08] Over 25% of persons that have come into the program are on PrEP.
[19:13] They expect to have a forum in the fall to address issues of chemsex and how they can help people understand the fusing and risks of sex and drug use.
RESOURCES:
QUOTES:
● “There’s a number of issues going on here, power and control.”
● “We’ve created a program that embraces a model of care.”
● “When you get peer engagement, it makes all the difference in the world.”