ACTS is an innovative, streamlined approach to HIV counseling and testing that is proven to facilitate significant improvements in HIV testing in both clinical and community-based settings. Developed by the Adolescent AIDS Program, ACTS is now implemented throughout the United States and South Africa.
The ACTS approach includes two components:
- A streamlined HIV counseling approach that can be delivered in as few as two minutes, so that providers can feasibly integrate HIV testing into routinely delivered care.
- A field-tested implementation process to facilitate routine HIV testing, including detailed instruction for buy-in, implementation planning, training and mentoring, and monitoring and evaluation.
Making HIV testing more routine is important because HIV-positive people who learn their status can access treatment that improves their health and prolongs their lives. Plus, they are more likely to prevent transmission to others because antiretroviral treatment lowers viral load, and half report reducing their high-risk sexual behaviors once they know they are infected. In New York State, it is mandated by state law that almost all patients 13–64 years of age be offered an HIV test when they access healthcare.
For more information about ACTS, please contact Rebecca Shore, MPH, at [email protected] or 718-882-0232, ext. 215.