AIDS United Social Innovation Fund Final Evaluation Report

AIDS United, in partnership with Johns Hopkins University, conducted a multi-site evaluation of 12 of its SIF subgrantees in its Access to Care Initiative, which targets low-income and at-risk populations with HIV in order to connect them to services.

The four-pronged evaluation had the following research questions:

1. What were the barriers and facilitators for program implementation across sites?
2. Over 12 months, did participants have a lower measurement of HIV (viral load) in their blood than when they started the program?
3. What is the cost-effectiveness of the program to SIF? and
4. Are participants in the Birmingham, AL program more likely to have a decreased viral load after 12 months in the program than similar non-participants?

 The study concluded that:

1. Close partnerships with implementing partners were the most significant drivers of program success,
2. Statistically significant increases in mean CD4 were observed in 10 of 12 sites, significant decreases in viral load in 6 of 12 sites, and significant increases in viral suppression in 8 of 12 sites.
3. To be cost-saving, programs would need to avert one to two cases of HIV over the 12 months, and
4. While the viral load did decrease for participants in the randomized control trial in Alabama, the results were not statistically significant.