Positively: Description

WellMe's health promotion campaign, Positively: Mental Health and HIV/AIDS, is a unique combination of public health, media production and outreach. The campaign media tools include a one hour broadcast program for public television, a resource website, three outreach videos designed for people with HIV/AIDS (PWHAs), and an accompanying outreach booklet. All elements of the campaign were based on extensive research with a nationally recognized board of advisors, health care providers and people living with HIV/AIDS and their caregivers. The research for this campaign was funded by a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health and followed National Institutes of Health standards and protocols.

The campaign kicked off on World AIDS Day, 2001 with broadcast of Positively: The Changing Face of AIDS in America on public television stations nationwide. Public television stations were encouraged to collaborate with community based organization to do outreach activities, particularly around promoting HIV testing and providing resources for those who have already tested positive. Stations and organizations could also link to the resource website from their homepage and were provided an on-air promotion of the website resources.

An on-going major outreach initiative is being conducted by Roche Pharmaceuticals who are distributing more than 30,000 outreach video/booklet packages to doctors, clinics, community based organizations and conferences.

The outreach series was the recipient of the 2001 Freddy Time Inc. Health's International Health & Medical Media Award and received a Gold Medal from the 2001 National Health Information Awards. The public television program was nominated for a 2002 Emmy Award by the Washington, DC Chapter of the Association of Television Arts and Sciences.

The campaign media tools created for the Positively campaign include a one hour broadcast program for public television, a resource website, three educational videos designed for people with HIV/AIDS (PWHAs), and an accompanying resource booklet.

Public Television Program

Positively: The Changing Face of AIDS in America is a one hour educational program for public television that shows the face of HIV and AIDS in America today. Funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, Office on AIDS, this program shares the intimate stories of adults, teens and children who face HIV-related challenges everyday. Each story shows how support -whether it be from mental health professionals, community groups, spiritual/religious communities or friends and family - has had a dramatic effect on quality of life.

• Other topics covered in this program include:
  the shift in demographics of the disease – the effect on heterosexuals and African Americans, especially on African American women and African American gay men
• the benefits and difficulties of new drug therapies - what it’s like to live on combination drugs
• the importance of maintaining and improving mental health, especially in the face of complex drug regimens
• the effect of the stigma associated with HIV, especially for those living in rural communities
  This program will also promote awareness of the need for continued and pervasive prevention efforts – that “treatment” does not mean “cure” - and the critical need for mental health support for people living with the disease, especially in relation to adherence to combination drug regimens.

Resource Website

The resource website, http://wellme.stateart.com/aids.html, which was promoted in press and at the end of the television broadcast directs viewers to testing and counseling sites in their area, provides a broad range of information on HIV/AIDS and mental health issues and provides viewers with discussion guides and action items for getting involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Educational Video/Booklet Series

Positively: Coping with HIV/AIDS is a three part series targeted to individuals living with HIV/AIDS and all those who care for them, including non-professionals and professionals. Positively focuses on the impact that mental health issues have on both coping and disease management. It is designed to motivate viewers to be aware of mental health issues related to HIV and to seek support from a variety of sources. The series is also an excellent orientation for professionals working with HIV+ clients about the daily struggles and mental health issues facing people with HIV/AIDS.

To effectively deliver these messages, the series profiles real people living with HIV/AIDS and includes expert commentary from the professionals who surround them. These real-life stories serve to reinforce the critical role mental health support plays in improving adherence to medications and helping patients cope with side effects.

The individuals profiled also discuss:

• Moving through the denial period after diagnosis into acceptance and treatment
• Feelings of stigma associated with HIV/AIDS
• Coping with and treating mental health disorders like depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety in addition to HIV/AIDS
• Disclosing HIV status to family members and community and dealing with possible discrimination
• The benefits of support groups, individual therapy, spiritual/religious communities and other mental health services to improve both mental and physical health
• The stresses of caring for someone who is HIV+ and caregivers’ needs for support

The three videos profile real people with a variety of issues and experiences relating to HIV/AIDS. Each video focuses on the needs and experiences of a specific age group:

1. Positively: Adults (22+) Coping with HIV/AIDS
   • An African American family in which both the mother and a son are infected. The mother copes with her own and her son’s HIV status in a rural area of the country where an accepting community can be very hard to find.
   • A heterosexual Latino man deals with the loss of his job and independence while struggling with some major HIV related illnesses. His story shows how recovering mental health can be the turning point in the struggle to recover from illness.
   • A gay white man and his partner struggle to cope with his bipolar disorder, which adds layers of complexity to his HIV experience.
     
     
2. Positively: Young Adults (15-21) Coping with HIV/AIDS
   • A gay African American man, age 22, deals with depression and a history of being discriminated against for his sexual orientation. He gets support from a community youth group that provides members with a safe forum to share their experiences as sexual and racial minorities, as well as people living with HIV.
   • A heterosexual African American woman, age 23, shares the story of finding out she is pregnant and HIV positive when she was only 16. She tells her story of going from a group home to a full time job and her own house, where she now lives with her six-year old son.
   • A heterosexual white woman, age 17, shares her feelings of anger about being infected at birth by her mother who was a drug addict. She discusses how seeing a therapist has helped her deal with the death of her mother and the stress of her medications.
     
     
3. Positively: Caregivers of Children (14 and under) Coping with HIV/AIDS
   • An African American woman who is HIV+ and her husband struggle to keep up the spirits of their twelve year old son who is also HIV+. They discuss disclosing his status and that of his mother to both their kids, including him in decisions about his care, and getting one-on-one counseling for themselves as caregivers.
   • A white foster couple care for three HIV+ girls, ages 6, 7 and 8 who have a variety of physical and emotional challenges. They discuss: handling issues of death and dying, especially the loss of birth parents; medication adherence; and learning and physical disabilities. They explain how much support groups with other caregivers of HIV+ children have help them cope and learn strategies for helping the children.
   • A single Latino man in NY and his adopted 12 year old HIV+ son discuss how a therapist has helped them adjust to their new life together as a family. With their therapist's help, they have dealt with behavioral issues in school and at home, medication related issues, and healing the trauma of the boy's childhood.

Each video includes a booklet which reinforces the messages of the video, provides additional information not easily conveyed in the video format and includes a glossary of terms and resource listings.