1. HRSA Issues - Barbara Aranda-Naranjo

a. New Project Officer - Wayne Sauseda promoted to Director of Title III & Title IV. The demonstration site have been assigned to Barbara who will cover New Mexico, Arizona and SYHC. Adan Cajina will be project officer for El Paso and Harlingen. She will send out a formal notice to all sites. Demonstration sites may contact Barbara at 301-443-4149, Melica Williams at 301-443-9481will take messages for Barbara. Barbara will participate in Harlingen site visit. Consultant, Dr. L. Martinez, will be working with Barbara on these projects. Also Frank Wong will assist David and Barbara on evaluation issues and be available to assist local projects with specific issues.

b. Six Month Report - July 1 through Dec. 31, 2000 - Due around January 31, 2001 to HRSA. Notice and forms have been mailed out. Sites are asked to submit their final Logic Model and other progress information. Barbara is available to respond to specific questions about the report requirements. Sites will be asked if they have any other technical assistance needs and budget.

a. Risk Factors - Add mental health impairment, chronic unemployment (recommended by Huba), homelessness. Comment: question about multiple partners could also be important. Concern over whether this information would be collected as part of outreach. Need to specify a time frame in which behavior occurred and specify gender with whom sexual contact was made. It was suggested that a 3-month period be considered. Question: # of sexual partners within a time frame - are we interested in most recent 3-month period or relationships prior to diagnoses? Comment: might want to include protected and unprotected sex variable. Kurt describes a scale that has been used previously that asked # of partners, sex of partners, # protected sex, etc. Joao - emphasized that their focus is outreach and testing, but feels when persons are diagnosed, it is important to determine how they became infected. Questions about mode of infection are asked during case management intake. Comment: this would miss information on those persons who are being tested; suggested maybe asking them these questions after they have been tested. David said if they choose to ask these risk factors, then we would need to provide a variable stating whether they are HIV positive or currently being tested. Concerned expressed with repetition of questions which often frustrate clients. Data can be extracted by projects from other information collected for CDC or other reports, as long as it is the same variable. Combining drug use into one category (agreement among group). David considering combining 9 & 10 into injection use. Joao suggested question about where blood transfusion received because blood in Mexico is not always tested. Questions 12, 13, and 17 - how related to risk? Persons incarceration may share sex in jail or take up drug injection; question needs to be more specific - suggested incarceration: in US / Mexico. Yolanda said we need to make distinction between mode of transmission and risk factors. Question on #12 - alcohol not clear. Tarter suggested smoking including marijuana are important variables, along with alcohol. May need to divide risk factors into two groups - disease related and HIV risk related (direct). Antonio will provide a list of illicit and legal drug use to David for review. Kurt suggested possibly a third group called co-factors.

b. Cultural Issues - Traditional healer - Suggestion this needs to possibly clarify whether local or in Mexico. Language does not include reading - group recommended that reading be included. Suggested adding language to acculturation scale. Joao suggested that Tribal language also include tribal groups in Mexico. Tony asked if we would ask about herbal treatments/folk medicine. Kurt - concern that acculturation scale including language does not assess literacy. Question 6a & 6b: Bob -Texas require residency therefore questions could affect services; Bob suggested asking how much time spent in Mexico. Suggestion: a question about border crossings be considered. How often travel into Mexico? Issues to be considered may include employment, housing in both Mexico and US, and access to health care. Question 2 is a summary of 6 - 10. Question: are we interested if crossings are for health care, family, specific activities? Suggested Question 8 be changed to non-agricultural employment. Joao is interested in distinction between migrant work as seasonal or other, rural or urban, general labor.

3. Other Issues:

c. Betty's office phone number is 405-325-0442.