HIV/AIDS RESOURCE GUIDE FOR LA COUNTY NOW AVAILABLE

AIDS Project Los Angeles Publishes Guide for LA County Health Department

April 28, 2004, Los Angeles, CA – AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) today announced the publication of HIV L.A. and VIH L.A., comprehensive directories – in English and Spanish, respectively – to HIV/AIDS services across Los Angeles County.

Funded by the Los Angeles County Office of AIDS Programs and Policy (OAPP), HIV L.A. is printed in traditional magazine format and contains more than 1,600 service listings in 35 categories. Listings, which provide contact information and brief descriptions of HIV/AIDS service organizations, include medical, housing, legal, prevention, women’s and youth services, among others.

OAPP has funded APLA to print HIV L.A. and VIH L.A. and to maintain www.hivla.org, a searchable database, since 2001. HIV L.A.’s Web site is continuously updated; this publication marks the second annual printing. Both versions of the directory are distributed to service providers, clinics and hospitals, treatment centers, community-based organizations, bathhouses and at various health-related events across the county.

“HIV LA is a convenient guide to Los Angeles County's expansive continuum of care and services for people living with HIV disease,” said Craig E. Thompson, Executive Director of APLA. “These resource guides promote consumer choice and provider planning, and help overcome barriers to care created by Los Angeles' size and diversity.”

Since its beginning as a telephone hotline, APLA has provided public access to information about HIV/AIDS. In November 1992, APLA published HIV L.A. as a special edition of its former monthly newsletter Positive Living; in 1994, VIH L.A., the Spanish-language version, followed. APLA has produced four book-length self-care manuals and currently prints five newsletters and magazines with national and international distribution.

HIV L.A. and VIH L.A. are available in 16 distribution centers throughout all eight Service Planning Areas (SPAs) in Los Angeles County, or by contacting Oscar Ortiz 213.201.1364 or oortiz@apla.org.

AIDS Project Los Angeles, one of the nation’s largest AIDS service organizations, provides direct services to more than 7,500 men, women and children living with HIV or AIDS in Los Angeles County each year. Services include prevention education, food banks and nutrition education, professional dental care, housing assistance, transportation, mental health counseling, case management and home health care. APLA is a leader in the provision of bilingual HIV treatment information, in print and on the Internet, and advocates for effective AIDS-related policies and legislation on the local, state and federal level. For more information, please visit www.apla.org.

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