Tabono Project: National CBA Partnerships

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A sure way for one to lift himself up is by helping to lift someone else. Booker T. Washington		What Makes CBA Important? The following are questions that you may have about capacity building assistance (CBA) and CBA services in general. Some of the questions also address the specific CBA services provided by the Tabono CBA Project and how to request them for your community-based organization (CBO) or group of community stakeholders. What is Capacity Building Assistance (CBA)? Why is CBA Important? In What Ways can my Agency Benefit from CBA Services? Who can Receive CBA Services? How Much will CBA Services Cost my Agency? How do I Request CBA Services? How will CBA Services be Delivered to my Agency? How Long will it Take my Agency to Receive CBA Services? What Specific Services Does your CBA Program Offer? Who will Provide CBA Services to my Agency? What is Capacity Building Assistance (CBA)? Capacity is an outcome or condition that will increase the ability to perform or produce. Capacity Building is a long-term and comprehensive process by which capacities are enhanced or improved. In HIV prevention, capacity building is a process. In this process, health practitioners, behavioral researchers & scientists, and community members work together to assist community-based organizations (CBOs), health departments (HDs) and/or community stakeholders. The goal is to increase their skills and knowledge so that agencies and community members are able to conduct effective and sustainable HIV prevention services within their organization or community. This process, often referred to as capacity building assistance (CBA), is a national effort by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP). top Why is CBA Important? Public health professionals play a major role in addressing today's complex health challenges.¹ Building the capacity of these professionals in community-based organizations (CBOs), health departments (HDs) and community stakeholders is therefore a core public health function. However, public health has had an ever increasing burden placed on the resources necessary to improve services. CBA was initiated to help alleviate some of that burden. CBA providers can share information and resources and connect organizations to a wide variety of professionals who can improve their HIV prevention efforts. ¹ Novick and Mays, Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century (2003). top In What Ways can my Agency Benefit from CBA Services? An agency can benefit in a variety of ways once their CBA request has been received and assigned to a provider by the CDC. Specifically, CBA can assist an agency as it: Prepares to implement an evidenced based intervention (EBI) with fidelity; Determines its organizational capacity and readiness for a particular EBI; Adapts a particular HIV prevention intervention to the needs of its target population; Develops quality assurance protocols and procedures as they relate to a specific HIV prevention intervention; and Monitors and evaluates a particular HIV prevention intervention. top Who can Receive CBA Services? Any health department (HD), community-based organization (CBO), or community stakeholder that is directly or indirectly funded in the United States and US territories that is involved in HIV prevention efforts is eligible for capacity building assistance (CBA) through CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP). top How Much will CBA Services Cost my Agency? CBA services are funded by CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP)— there is NO COST to community-based organizations involved in HIV prevention efforts. These are free services that serve to benefit CBOs. top How Do I Request CBA Services? Capacity building assistance (CBA) services are initiated through a series of steps coordinated by the CDC. The steps that need to be taken are slightly different based on whether your agency receives direct CDC funding, indirect CDC funding from a state or local health department, or funding from sources other than the CDC. If your agency is directly funded by the CDC for HIV Prevention, contact your program consultant. If you are indirectly funded, contact your state or local health department, who can then contact the CDC on your behalf. Privately funded agencies may also request CBA services by contacting their health department or a CBA provider directly. Once the request has been made, the CDC will triage the request and assign it to a specific CBA provider, who will contact you shortly thereafter. If you are not sure who to contact or need assistance in making your request, Tabono CBA staff can assist you. Call 1-866-CBA-2580 or email us at rafikif@etr.org. top How will CBA Services be Delivered to my Agency? After your CBA request is received by a CBA provider, that provider will contact you, and you will work together to create an action plan. Within that action plan, you will determine the type(s) of CBA that will help you address your barriers so you can achieve results. top How Long will it Take my Agency to Receive CBA Services? Typically, a CBO submits a request to CDC, and it is triaged to a contracted CBA provider within three working days. Within 72 hours of receiving a CBA request from CDC, a member of the Tabono CBA staff will contact you to confirm the request and begin the CBA process. This will start with a meeting or a conference call between you and a Tabono CBA staff member to mutually develop an action plan. Dates to deliver services will be decided upon jointly. All CBA services will follow CDC guidelines for completion. top What Specific Services Does your CBA Program Offer? A major capacity building goal for the CDC is to strengthen HIV prevention in all communities throughout the nation, especially those with high HIV prevalence, incidence, and morbidity rates. ETR'S Tabono CBA Project will help community-based organizations and local health departments reach that goal. For example, capacity building assistance (CBA) services range from providing organizations with training on cultural humility to ethnic and cultural minorities and the behavioral sub-populations that exist within this community (MSM, WSM, IDU, etc.) to assisting organizations in adapting, tailoring and replicating effective models for HIV prevention and testing in non-medical settings for those at risk. Though the Tabono CBA Project provides CBA services to agencies implementing EBIs such as Focus on Youth with ImPACT, RAPP, SISTA, and D-up!, program staff can also provide these CBA services to organizations using other interventions that are not currently on CDC’s list of evidence-based interventions. Mechanisms of CBA delivery: Information Transfer: distribution and sharing of relevant and current HIV prevention information through print materials, presentations, websites, and mass media; Skills Building: the provision of training or TA on a chosen intervention or public health strategy; Technical Consultation: the provision and/or facilitation of culturally relevant and expert programmatic, scientific, and technical advice (mentoring/coaching) and support; Technical Services: the provision of hands-on development and/or facilitation of a community assessment tool to help CBOs gain the necessary information about a given population to determine the appropriate match for the intervention or public health strategy; and Technology Transfer: the process by which innovations are diffused among HIV prevention providers to improve how intervention effectiveness and scientific research is translated into programs and practice. Please contact us for more details. top Who will Provide CBA Services to my Agency? Capacity building assistance (CBA) is provided by members of the ETR Tabono CBA staff and consultants — whoever is most appropriate to meet your agency's CBA needs. CBA is provided by CDC-contracted organizations across the country. For more information on accessing these CBA providers, see the National Directory of CDC-funded CBA providers. For more information about ETR and the Tabono CBA Project, see About Us. top


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