Action Community Health

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Community Health Action of Staten Island ( formerly the Staten Island AIDS Task Force ), a 501 ( c ) community-based organization, educates Staten Islanders about HIV and AIDS and advocates for HIV-positive people. We work to prevent the spread of HIV, and to identify and serve the needs of Staten Islanders living with HIV/AIDS, their families and all others affected by this disease. Over the years, our services have expanded to serve other communities that were historically most impacted by AIDS. We have developed health educational and social programs for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender communities in the borough. We also operate a job counseling program for family members of our primary clients, a food bank for the general community, and a medically-supervised outpatient treatment program for persons dealing with active drug or alcohol use. Founded by a group of community advocates, service providers, and HIV-infected and affected people in 1988, Community Health Action is the only borough-wide AIDS service organization in Staten Island. Our case management staff currently assists about 400 HIV-positive clients and 75 at-risk persons and their families. This is a constantly shifting case load, as new clients come to us for services while former clients see their needs met, and rely on us less. Community Health Action currently serves 400 HIV+ persons, and affected family members. People at risk and HIV+ clients reside in all zip codes of Staten Island, and the agency has always served the entire borough. 90% of the clients have Medicaid or are low income. Clients are ethnically and racially diverse: 33% white, 42% black and 25% Latino. Close to 18% of our clients identify as gay, bisexual, lesbian or transgender. Some of our clients are physically challenged and all of our offices are fully handicapped-accessible. We will continue to pursue our mission of developing a community of caring for Staten Island, expanding as we see unmet needs and have opportunities for new and creative programs.