The Southern Black Policy & Advocacy Network (SBPAN) approached Impact Marketing + Communications to support the design and dissemination work on a first-of-its-kind HIV advocacy needs assessment in conjunction with National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Impact designed and developed the layout for the report, drafted and disseminated a press release, and developed a social media toolkit to be shared with constituents. SBPAN’s report brings together disparate data sets to provide a more complete picture of HIV and advocacy needs for Black communities in the South. This premier report, titled HIV Advocacy Needs Assessment: Health Policy and Advocacy Opportunities for Black Communities in the South includes cross-comparisons of:
• Statewide HIV prevalence rates
• HIV care continuum data
• Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) data—the largest federal HIV program and the administrator of the nationwide AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP)
• Medicaid expansion
• Statewide pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) coverage—the HIV prevention medication that can reduce HIV transmission by up to 97 percent
• Community mobilization and advocacy perceptions and opportunities
• the Black public health workforce
Impact’s work helped create visual intrigue while also making the data easily comparable across the Southern states.
The Southern Black Policy & Advocacy Network (SBPAN)
The Southern Black Policy & Advocacy Network (SBPAN) increases the capacity of Black communities and leaders to make meaningful public health policy and advocacy impact in the U.S. South by leveraging data, using evidence-informed solutions, and applying a culturally competent lens to provide training, education, advocacy, and mobilization.