In this webcast series, members of the DAP Health team review key data and discuss their real-world experiences providing care for persons living with HIV during the COVID-19 pandemic. DAP Health opened one of California’s first COVID-19 clinics and hotlines to offer screening, testing, and treatment.

Topics covered in this webcast series include:

• COVID-19–Related Complications in Persons Living With HIV (PLWH);
• COVID-19 Testing Strategies;
• Home Care for PLWH Diagnosed With COVID-19;
• Inpatient Care for PLWH Diagnosed With COVID-19;
• Mental Health Needs of PLWH;
• Improving Accessibility: HIV Testing and HIV Care;
• Identifying New Community Hot Spots for HIV Transmission; and
• Outreach and Education: Focus on Underserved, High-Risk Communities.

Partnership Between Annenberg Center and DAP Health

This educational series is the result of a partnership between Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower (“Annenberg Center”) and DAP Health. Annenberg Center’s Rancho Mirage headquarters and DAP Health’s Palm Springs headquarters are found within California’s Coachella Valley. This shared local community is also home to persons at particularly high risk for serious COVID-19–related complications:  

• Persons Living With HIV (PLWH)
  Certain areas in Coachella Valley report a high prevalence rate of HIV cases. Palm Springs, for example, has a prevalence rate that is almost 20 times higher than the prevalence rate for all of California.1


• Older Adults Living With HIV
  Nearly half (43%) of all PLWH in the Coachella Valley are aged ≥60 years.1


• Impoverished, Underserved Communities
  As of 2019, more than 19% of residents in the Coachella Valley lived at or below the Federal Poverty Level,2 vs 13% of residents in California2 and 10.5% in the United States.3 Some areas in Coachella Valley report even higher poverty rates (eg, Desert Hot Springs, 32%; Coachella, 22%).4,5

Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower
Since 1982, Annenberg Center has served as a distinguished forum for the examination of healthcare issues and the advancement of science and medicine. Learn more by visiting https://annenberg.net.

DAP Health
DAP Health is an advocacy-based health center that serves over 9,700 patients with medical and mental healthcare; HIV and STD testing and treatment; dentistry, pharmacy, laboratory services, social services; and help with food, housing, joblessness, and isolation. For more on DAP Health, visit www.daphealth.org.

References
1. Riverside University Health System – Public Health. Epidemiology of HIV in Riverside County, 2018. https://www.rivcohivaids.org/Portals/15/Riverside_County_HIV_AIDS_2018_Final.pdf?ver=2019-08-22-153618-560. Accessed February 25, 2021.
2. U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates. 2019. Retrieved from Census Reporter Profile page for Coachella Valley CCD, Riverside County, CA. http://censusreporter.org/profiles/06000US0606590520-coachella-valley-ccd-riverside-county-ca/. Accessed February 25, 2021.
3. Semega J, Kollar M, Shrider EA, Creamer JF. U.S. Census Bureau. Current Population Reports. Income and Poverty in the United States: 2019. U.S. Government Publishing Office, Washington, DC. 2020;60-270.
4. U.S. Census Bureau. QuickFacts: Desert Hot Springs city, California. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/deserthotspringscitycalifornia. Accessed February 25, 2021.
5. U.S. Census Bureau. QuickFacts: Coachella city, California. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/caochellacitycalifornia. Accessed February 25, 2021.

Presenting Faculty

• 

  Christopher Foltz, MD, AAHIVS

  HIV Primary Care and Infectious Disease Physician
  DAP Health
  Palm Springs, California

• 

  Jill Gover, PhD

  Behavioral Health Manager
  Licensed Clinical Psychologist
  DAP Health
  Palm Springs, California

• 

  Shubha Kerkar, MD, FACP, AAHIVS, FIDSA

  Director of Infectious Disease
  DAP Health
  Palm Springs, California

• 

  C.J. Tobe

  Director of Community Health
  DAP Health
  Palm Springs, California