Winter 2020 - Volume 3
AGING HEALTHY RESOURCES
A News Service of The AIDS Institute
Upcoming Awareness Day:
National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
March 10, 2020
Every year on March 10 — and throughout the month of March — local, state, federal, and national organizations come together to shed light on the impact of HIV and AIDS on women and girls and show support for those at risk of and living with HIV. This year marks the 14th annual observance of National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NWGHAAD).

We've made tremendous progress against HIV and AIDS in the U.S., but women remain vulnerable to infection — especially black or  African-American and Hispanic women . Any woman who has sex can get HIV, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, or sexual orientation. Today, nearly  1 million people in the U.S. are diagnosed with HIV , and nearly 1 in 4 of them are women.

The 2019 NWGHAAD theme, "HIV Prevention Starts With Me," emphasizes the role everyone plays in HIV prevention—community organizations, health care professionals, and women and men, including those living with HIV. There are steps you can take to protect yourself, your partner, your family, and your neighbors.

To learn more, visit  What every woman needs to know about HIV, What every girl needs to know about HIV , or the National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day  fact sheet .
Older American’s Act (OAA) Title III-D List Feedback The 2020 theme is “We’re in This, Together.”
 
This observance is an opportunity to increase HIV education, testing, community involvement, and treatment among black communities.

The first National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD) was marked in 1999 as a grassroots-education effort to raise awareness about HIV and AIDS prevention, care, and treatment in communities of color.

In collaboration with Administration for Community Living (ACL), the Evidence-Based Program Review Council is surveying organizations that have implemented  approved evidence-based health promotion and disease prevention programs  that meet .

As part of a re-review of all programs on the current Title III-D approved list, this survey aims to gauge satisfaction with these evidence-based programs:
  • Active Choices
  • Active Living Every Day (ALED)
  • AEA Arthritis Foundation Aquatic Program (AFAP)
  • AEA Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program (AFEP)
  • Better Choices, Better Health (online Chronic Disease Self-Management Program)
  • Care Transitions Intervention (CTI)
  • EnhanceWellness
  • FallsTalk/FallScape
  • Geri-Fit® Strength Training Workout
  • Healthy IDEAS
  • Healthy Moves for Aging Well
  • Otago Exercise Program
  • Stay Active and Independent for Life (SAIL)
  • Stress-Busting Program for Family Caregivers
Individual responses will not be shared with program administrators/coordinators. For quality improvement, the Council will compile responses to help identify where programs could enhance implementation.

Surveys are due by Friday, February 14, 2020.
By 2020, more than one in five people living with HIV around the world is expected to be over the age of 50. In 2016, eight of ten older people living with HIV globally were in low- and middle-income countries. In the US, almost half of those living with HIV who know their diagnosis were at least 50 years old in 2015.

In the US, HIV began mostly as a disease of young men. Today, however, the epidemic affects both women and men of all ages, including older women. While 50 may not seem 'old,' it is often the age used by organizations that keep track of health-related statistics. As a result, issues related to getting and being older with HIV are receiving more and more attention.

The number of older people living with HIV is growing for two main reasons: 1) powerful HIV drugs are allowing many people to lead longer, healthier lives with HIV; and 2) while most new HIV cases occur in younger people, people over 50 are acquiring HIV at increasing rates.

Many of the medical problems now faced by people living with HIV have more to do with aging than with HIV-related illnesses. While many concerns faced by long-term survivors of HIV (those who have been living with the virus for more than ten years) relate to common effects of aging, others have to do with the unique realities of living with HIV for many years, often during the most devastating years of the epidemic. For more information on the experiences of those who have been living with HIV for a decade or more, please see the fact sheet on  Long-Term Survivors of HIV .

For more information on Aging and HIV, click here .
Upcoming Events
2020 Florida Conference on Aging
Date: August 24-26, 2020
Location: Caribe Royale, Orlndo

You are invited to share your aging-related expertise, research, and promising practices by submitting proposals for presentations. All proposals must be submitted using the online submission form. Proposals for intermediate and advanced presentations are especially sought. In addition to invited faculty, the Program Sub-Committee competitively reviews proposals for conference presentations. Deadline for submission is February 28, 2020. Final selections will be made by April 6, 2020.
May is Older American's Month . This year's theme, "Make Your Mark", was selected to encourage and celebrate countless contributions that older adults make to our communities. Their time, experience, and talents benefit family, peers, and neighbors every day. Communities, organizations, and individuals of all ages are also making their marks. This year’s theme highlights the difference everyone can make – in the lives of older adults, in support of caregivers, and to strengthen communities.
Resources
Opioids and Older Adults
The opioid public health emergency is affecting Americans of all ages; racial, ethnic, sexual, and gender minorities; income classes; and geographic areas. However, older adults and persons with disabilities are among the groups most impacted by the opioid crisis because they often use prescription opioids to cope with acute pain, such as after a surgery, or ongoing pain from chronic conditions.
Through the aging and disability networks, ACL is helping address the opioid crisis by:
  • Reaching people impacted by this crisis in the community (i.e., older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, grandparents raising grandchildren), and connecting them with resources
  • Offering resources to professionals and volunteers touching the lives of older people, people with disabilities, and caregivers
  • Generating new knowledge on the impact of the opioid crisis on people with disabilities and older adults, as well as their families
  • Aligning partnerships within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and with other federal agencies to increase access to effective prevention and treatment.
Check out a special edition of NIH News in Health on seniors. The newsletter highlights practical health news and tips based on the latest NIH research.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Preliminary 2018 HIV Surveillance Report, persons aged 50 and older accounted for approximately:
• 17% of new HIV diagnoses
• 47% of persons living with HIV
• 71% of all deaths of persons with diagnosed HIV infection

Click here to view the full report.
Archived Webinars
Research on Aging with HIV

Learn about a newly NIH-funded research project involving the aging community living with HIV.

 This webinar focuses on Miami's innovative project of tracking noninfectious health conditions that patients living with HIV experience as they age such as cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, metabolic and degenerative diseases, such as diabetes and osteoporosis, and mental health issues.
Presented by:
  • Dr. Maria Luisa Alcaide
  • Dr. Margaret A. Fischl
  • Dr. Deborah Jones Weiss
Women with HIV and Aging-Related Challenges
Presented by Dawn Averitt
Founder, The Well Project/Women's Research Initiative on HIV/AIDS (WRI)
OTHER AGING RESOURCES