Find HIV Disease Intervention Specialists near you

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FAQs:

What is an HIV Disease Intervention Specialist?

An HIV disease intervention specialist is a highly trained public health professional who is at the forefront of disease intervention work. While they primarily work with STIs, they also assist during urgent outbreak situations. DIS uses contact tracing and case investigation to prevent and control infectious diseases like HIV. Both practices involve identifying and supporting people who may have been infected by exposure to a person with an infectious disease.

What Does an HIV Disease Intervention Specialist Do?

The purpose of a Disease Intervention Specialist (DIS) is to intervene in the spread of HIV and syphilis. This position locates and interviews patients and their sexual partners to gather information on infections or exposures to HIV and STDs. Duties include are:

• - recommending testing/screening and referring positive patients to care

• - consulting with private/public providers to obtain information on treated cases;

• - performing diagnostic and treatment techniques; 

• - seeking permission to apply epidemiological processes to private patients; 

• - assisting in statewide screening programs on STDs and HIV to ensure timely reporting of positive findings.

• - providing medical consultation to clinics, county health departments, prisons, and jails on STDs and HIV. 

- Disease Intervention Specialist plays a critical role in diagnosis as well as screening people who have been exposed to it.

What is Disease Intervention?

Disease intervention is key to sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention and control. Disease intervention consists of identifying people who don't know they may be infected and helping people receive treatment fast.

How Can a Disease Intervention Specialist Help?

Disease Intervention Specialists (DIS) are available to help medical providers locate patients who have been tested, but did not return to get positive test results or treatment. In such cases, DIS can act as an agent of the medical provider, using their resources and experience to locate these patients. Once located, patients can be referred back to the original provider, or the health department, for treatment and other needed services.

DIS can also help medical providers locate contact partners who need to be notified of possible exposures and receive testing and treatment.

Finally, DIS works with both medical providers and community-based organizations to ensure that patients receive the care they need. For example, DIS can assist with linking patients to additional services such as financial aid, housing, and mental health. Sometimes patient navigators also help with linkages to care and other support services.

What are the Different Levels of Disease Intervention?

The natural history of a disease is classified into five stages: underlying, susceptible, subclinical, clinical, and recovery/disability/death. Corresponding preventive health measures have been grouped into similar stages to target the prevention of these stages of a disease. These preventive stages are primordial prevention, primary prevention, secondary prevention, and tertiary prevention. Combined, these strategies not only aim to prevent the onset of disease through risk reduction but also downstream complications of a manifested disease.

Why Would a Disease Intervention Specialist Contact Me?

DIS routinely follows up with those who have been diagnosed with STIs such as syphilis, HIV, gonorrhea, and depending on local processes, chlamydia, via a phone call, text message, email, or social media message, among others. Those who are diagnosed with an STI may be asked to share information about themselves and their partners such as name, date of birth, address/current living situation, pregnancy status, and any STI symptoms they may have. This information is very important for the DIS to complete their investigation and stop the spread of disease.

What are the Partner Services that a DIS Uses?

DIS uses partner services to assist in identifying individuals at risk for STIs, increasing STI awareness, and providing timely treatment. These services are offered to people with STIs, their partners, and social contacts. Partner services can include:

• - prevention counseling

• - HIV and STI testing

• - hepatitis screenings

• - vaccinations

• - treatment or medical referrals

• - referrals to other services (e.g., reproductive health services, prenatal care, substance abuse treatment, social support, housing assistance, legal services, and mental health services)

• Sources:

  CDC

  Salary

  VDH

  NIH

  Epi Utah