Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP)

Ryan White Administrative Agency

Staff

Program Manager: Mr. John R. Keiser

Program Coordinator: Ms. Maribel Rodriguez

Program Planner: Ms. Dora Inclan

ARIES Data Manager: Ms. Cindy Garza

Quality Assurance: Ms. Erika A. Garcia

Compliance Monitor: Ms. Alma Briseno

Mission

The STDC South Texas HIVAA Services Program serves in providing a means to plan, coordinate, and implement regional strategies that will improve the health; quality of living; access to high quality standards of services and care, in order to provide a comprehensive and coordinated continuum of services and opportunities for people and families living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.

Since 2002, the STDC has contracted with the Texas Department of State Health Services as the Administrative Agency (AA) for the South Texas HIV Administrative Service Area (HASA) in the provision of services through contract with area direct service providers within Health District 11. Funds are applied from both Federal and State allotments, with Ryan White funds coming from the Human Resources Services Administration (HRSA) at the federal level and HIV State Health and Social Services funds deriving from State allocations.

Purpose

The South Texas Development Council’s (STDC) South Texas HIV Administrative Agency (AA) Services Program is dedicated to implementing the objectives of the Ryan White CARE Act of 1990 (PL 101-381) and Amendments of 1996 (PL 104-146) and 2000 (PL 106-345) now the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization ACT HR 6143 (PL 109-TBD).

The South Texas HIV AA Program has the sole responsibility for providing administrative services in the Laredo/Brownsville/Corpus Christi HIV Service Delivery Areas (HSDA) that will serve to improve the quality, availability, and organization of health care and support services for individuals living with HIV disease and their families.

The Department Health State Services (DSHS) has designated the STDC as the AA for the Laredo, Brownsville, and Corpus Christi HIV Service Delivery Area(s), and serves the counties of Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Duval, Jim Wells, Kennedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, McMullen, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Jim Hogg, Webb, Zapata, Starr, Duval, Cameron, Willacy, and Hidalgo. In addition, the STDC South Texas HIV AA Program establishes policies, develops procedures, provides technical assistance and conducts monitoring of subcontractors’ programs as may be necessary to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations governing this and other related grant funded programs (i.e. HOPWA, State Services).

The program contains three principal components through which it operates And is as follows: Planning, Program Coordination, and Data Management- AIDS Regional Information and Evaluation System (ARIES).

PLANNING
The planning component for developing allocations for each service to be provided by subcontractors, developing needs Assessments and the comprehensive plan for the HASA.

PROGRAM COORDINATION
The program coordination component is primarily responsible for developing program applications to secure funding, developing contracts, monitoring of subcontractor programs, maintaining a quality management program and
program reporting.

DATA MANAGEMENT- AIDS REGIONAL AND EVALUATION SYSTEM (ARIES)
The ARIES program component is the data management component which compiles all program data and reports it back to DSHS through an online data reporting system called ARIES. The Data Improvement Plan is a tool utilized for tracking HRSA required data fields in the ARIES program. This tool is completed on a quarterly basis and submitted to DSHS. The RSR report is a compliance report submitted annually to HRSA that collects all client demographics and services from January to December. Agencies receiving Ryan White funds should complete this report by entering their client data and services in the ARIES program.

PROGRAM PLANNING