Spotlight Series: Increasing Access to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) in Baltimore

Description

At year-end 2020, there were 31,676 people aged 13+ living with diagnosed HIV in Maryland, including the 724 individuals who were diagnosed in 2020. As of 2019, Maryland ranked eighth among states and territories in adult/adolescent HIV diagnosis rates (per 100,000).

It is possible to decrease chances of contacting HIV among high-risk individuals, mainly through Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a medicine taken to prevent HIV. PrEP is one major tool in preventing HIV transmission, but there are many others, including regular HIV and other STD testing for high-risk individuals, tools to help individuals have safe sex conversations with their partner(s), regular counseling sessions with a social worker, and community trust in the available services and programs.

Join Shanna Dell (BSN '13, MPH '17), a clinical nurse supervisor, as she discusses how the Baltimore City Health Department is working to prevent the spread of HIV in Baltimore.