Word on the Street: Danya Announces Release of The Professional Outreach Toolkit

SILVER SPRING, MD. (May 16, 2001) – Danya International, Inc., a leader in substance abuse treatment education and health communications, announces the release of The Professional Outreach Toolkit. This toolkit gives outreach workers who work with drug users a new tool to prevent HIV and hepatitis.

Outreach workers are professionals who provide counseling and prevention education to out-of-treatment drug users. These drug users are often at risk for HIV, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases. The toolkit is designed to enhance the professional training and resources available to outreach workers. This package was developed by the Center for HIV, Hepatitis and Addiction Training and Technology (CHHATT) operated by Danya as part of the DC/Delaware Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) and funded by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The package consists of three interrelated pieces for training HIV and hepatitis outreach workers:

• Community-Based Outreach Model to Prevent HIV and Hepatitis Among Drug Users: A Trainer's Guide
  
  This trainer’s guide includes the tools required to provide a 4-hour multimedia training session on the community-based outreach model for preventing HIV and the hepatitis B and C viruses among out-of-treatment drug users; a suggested presentation script accompanied by text for Microsoft PowerPoint® slides; and cue cards ideal to present educational material to clients in the field. This guide supplements a new training manual developed by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
  
  
• Outreach Competencies: Minimum Standards for Conducting Street Outreach for Hard-to-Reach Populations
  
  This brochure outlines the minimum standards for performing effective outreach activities to hard-to-reach populations (including intravenous drug users, commercial sex workers, and youth). This marks the first occasion that these guidelines, established by representatives from community-based organizations, AIDS service organizations, health departments, and universities, have been outlined and compiled in an easily accessible manual.
  
  
• How to Set Up an Effective Mobile Outreach Prevention Program
  
  This pamphlet is designed to help community-based organizations and other individuals or groups in the planning and implementation of a mobile outreach vehicle designed to reduce the risk of HIV, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases among active drug-using populations.

When asked about the importance of The Professional Outreach Toolkit, Dwight Clark, National Outreach Coordinator for CHHATT, replied, “We hope that community outreach programs will take advantage of this opportunity to promote effective training for their workers. This in turn will hopefully reduce the use of drugs and the spread of HIV and hepatitis.”

These materials will be previewed at “Keeping it Real: Street-Level Intervention Strategies for Addiction, HIV, and Hepatitis C,” a 2-day conference held on May 18 through 19 in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference is co-sponsored by the CHHATT and CSAT in an effort to focus on educating outreach workers and substance abuse counselors on how to find and help hard-to-reach populations.

About Danya International, Inc.
Danya creates, delivers, and evaluates innovative behavior change strategies that empower people of all ages and from all walks of life to live healthier and better educated lives. The company provides breakthrough services in the areas of public health communication, research and evaluation, information technology, education and training, program management support, and health product development. Founded on the guiding principles of integrity, quality, and creativity, Danya helps its public and private-sector clients to develop research-based tools and campaigns that communicate clear, concise, and effective health messages across all media forms. Founded in 1996, Danya is based in Silver Spring, Maryland. To learn more about the company, visit www.danya.com.