CISWH Project Resources

The Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) Planning Council partnered with the Center for Advancing Health Policy and Practice for the 2017 Needs Assessment report. The goal was to identify barriers that prevent people living with HIV, both in and out of care, from receiving needed services, engaging in care, and/or adhering to medication regimens.

In 2014, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) and Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) launched a project to develop an acuity tool to assess the severity of needs of clients living with HIV. The CAHPP team worked with MDPH and BPHC staff to create an acuity tool that assesses client needs in 13 areas of functioning and four categories of severity. The CAHPP team conducted a pilot test of the tool with medical case management providers in 38 agencies across MA and NH and evaluated the results. A link to the tool and final evaluation report appears below. The report provided MDPH Office of HIV/AIDS with the credibility and information to talk with providers about necessary modifications and finalize the tool for dissemination in HIV CM programs. The MDPH Office of HIV/AIDS has required the use of the acuity tool in funded case management programs. It has also been used to assess the acuity of patients in other organizations throughout the country.

To request an Excel version of the report and sample of the guidance provided by MDPH on the use of the tool, please fill out our contact form with a subject line “Acuity tool and guidance.”