2006 Needs Assessment

1. 2006 Needs Assessment What Is It and How Can HPPC Use It? May 11, 2006

2. Today�s Goal To provide the HPPC with enough information so that members can be prepared to select a population for this year�s needs assessment The process: After today, members will do a straw poll using surveymonkey Steering Committee will develop a needs assessment proposal based on straw poll results HPPC will approve the final needs assessment at the June meeting

3. What Is A Needs Assessment? A needs assessment is a small-scale research project that looks at the unmet HIV prevention needs of a particular population and identifies prevention approaches that could be implemented to address the need. It can be quantitative (numbers), qualitative (stories), or both.

4. What Does an HPPC Needs Assessment Look Like? They are done with a population that the HPPC selects and approves. They are usually done quickly (about 6-8 months from implementation to preliminary report). They have small sample sizes (usually less than 50 survey participants, about 2 focus groups).

5. What Does an HPPC Needs Assessment Look Like? (cont.) They work best with populations/issues for which there are few or no data � they are �preliminary inquiries� into a population or issue. They work best when the population and research question are specific. They are not large-scale, population-based research studies with generalizable findings. They are low budget (~$40,000).

6. Past HPPC Needs Assessments Latino immigrant MSM (2001) Men who have sex with MTF transgendered people (2001; published in 2006) Heterosexually identified MSM, with a focus on African American and Latinos (2004) Tenderloin-based homeless and marginally housed MSM and MTF sex workers (2004) Bayview/Hunter�s Point systems capacity assessment by neighborhood (SCAN; 2004) Tenderloin SCAN (2004) Native American two-spirit (2004) Visitacion Valley assessment (2005)

7. A Successful Needs Assessment: Men Who Have Sex with MTF Persons This was an ideal population, because there were literally no existing data. We learned a little about: Who these men are (they come from all walks of life, with varying sexual identities) Their sexual partners (they also have sex with men, women, or both) Their sexual behaviors (both insertive and receptive anal sex with MTFs) This information can inform how service providers do risk assessments and deliver services

8. A Less Successful Needs Assessment: Latino Immigrant MSM There was already substantial information about this population. We were not able to learn much new or definitive, because: The sample size was too small The research question was not specific enough

9. 2006 Needs Assessment We gathered Council input on possible populations/topics: Announcements were made at committee meetings where members were invited to send HPS staff an email with their ideas Members were invited to fill out index cards with needs assessment ideas at the April Council meeting HPS staff made note of issues/themes that arose during HPPC/Committee meetings The needs assessment �parking lot� is now closed

10. The Short List The �short list� = Where there has been the most Council interest and energy Feasible (given funding, method, timeline) The study has not already been done in some form or another

11. The Short List Late testers What are the barriers to getting tested and how to reduce these? IDUs What are the needs beyond needle exchange? What are the gaps in services for IDUs in SF? FTM transgendered people who have sex with MSM Is this a population at risk? Youth Lots of ideas for a youth needs assessment (see full list)

12. The Full List This list contains all the ideas offered to date See handout

13. Next Steps Look for a surveymonkey survey � it will list all the populations from the short and full lists Questions or comments?