Efficacy of a Process Improvement Intervention on Inmate Awareness of HIV Services: A Multi-Site Trial

• In Event: Health and Illness-Related Issues Behind Bars

Abstract

HIV prevalence among US inmates is over 300% greater than in the general population, creating public health concerns and cost issues for correctional systems, while also creating chances to detect and treat the disease. As part of the NIDA funded Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Studies cooperative, this paper reports the results of a study that tested an organizational process improvement strategy for implementing HIV services in correctional facilities. The study used a clustered randomized trial approach incorporating 28 facilities matched in pairs, in which one paired facility utilized a coach driven local change team approach and the other received HIV training and was asked to improve HIV services on their own. This paper examines how inmates perceived HIV services and how easy it was to access services at baseline and 12 months later. Baseline and follow-up measures were collected anonymously from individuals incarcerated in the experimental and control facilities that were part of the study. Using t-tests, effect sizes and two-way ANOVA techniques, results indicate that inmates in the experimental facilities showed greater improvement in perceptions of staff attitudes towards HIV services, and that services were more easily attained. Implications for policy and practices regarding HIV services are discussed.

Authors

• Holly Swan, Department of Veterans Affairs

• Michele Pich, Rowan University

• Daniel J. O'Connell, University of Delaware

• Carmen Albizu García, University of Puerto Rico

• Yvonne Patterson, University of Connecticut

• Matthew Hiller, Temple University