HEALTH INITIATIVES FOR YOUTH - A MODEL OF YOUTH ADULT PARTNERSHIP APPROACH TO HIV/AIDS SERVICES/

Health Initiatives for Youth (HIFY) in San Francisco, California, is a n innovative organization providing health-related services for and by young people funded in part by the Special Projects of National Signi ficance (SPNS) Program. The HIFY Youth Health Initiative (YHI) is comp osed of eight youth staff and aims to bring about individual and syste mic change, enhance the quality of life for human immunodeficiency vir us (HIV)-positive and at-risk young people, and increase the responsiv eness and youth sensitivity of organizational and community systems. C omprehensive services have been delivered to 136 young men under 25 ye ars, 33.1% of whom are HIV positive, and 164 young women, of whom 12.2 % are HIV positive. In addition, thousands of youth and young adults h ave received lower-intensity services through dozens of educational wo rkshops and presentations. YHI services are implemented through a comp rehensive collection of education, training, and support activities th at benefit the youth staff who produce them, along with the participan ts who benefit from the services provided. These activities include a speaker's bureau, health and advocacy trainings, internships, return-t o-work and life skills training, publications, and conferences. Region al and national findings suggest that many youth do not yet comprehend their risk for HIV infection or understand the impact of HIV on their community. In direct response to these needs, HIFY programs inform an d encourage access to counseling and testing, and provide meaningful a ccess to adolescent care, treatment, and services. (C) Society for Ado lescent Medicine, 1998.