Our mission is to serve people living with HIV/AIDS, their loved ones, caregivers and communities at
large, through compassionate and non-judgmental care, prevention, education and advocacy.
The Alliance dates back to 1989, when the AIDS Service Agency of Orange County, Triangle AIDS
Interfaith Network (TRAIN) and AIDS Service Agency of North Carolina consolidated efforts in
servicing and supporting people living with HIV/AIDS.
The formal action that created the Alliance of AIDS Services - Carolina (AAS-C) occurred in the autumn
of 1999. Since the consolidation, the Alliance has successfully integrated its founding organizations into
one agency with nearly 50 employees and a yearly budget of more than $2.5 million dollars.
AAS-C has continued to grow in the first decade of the 21st century, reaching well beyond its four, core
counties – Wake, Durham, Orange and Johnston – to include seven more: Chatham, Franklin, Granville,
Lee, Person, Vance and Warren. In April 2010, the Access Network of Care was established to change the
way individuals living with HIV or AIDS can link into and access care in Region Six of North Carolina
(mainly the Piedmont region of the state). The Network is co-administered by Wake County Human
Services and AAS-C. As one of the funded partners, the Alliance’s participation enables us to broaden
our reach to include thousands of others impacted by HIV/AIDS and related issues. Each of our offices
is located in an accessible area within the communities most affected by the virus, and our long-term
commitment diversity is reflected in the make-up of our staff – one that is sensitive to issues of cultural
competency.
Aside from primary care, the Alliance is the only agency in North Carolina that provides a full continuum
of care to individuals living with HIV/AIDS: pastoral care and counseling; substance abuse treatment;
mental health counselors; nutritional counseling with a registered dietitian; medical and non-medical case
management; a shared-living situation (Hustead House) and a family care home (Orange House). We
stand alone as the principal public policy leader with initiatives in the state of North Carolina for people at
risk or living with HIV. In addition, the Alliance has been the portal of entry for federal Ryan White and
HOPWA funds for over 14 years.
In 2010, the Alliance provided nearly 1,200 clients with emergency assistance in Wake, Durham,
Orange and Johnston counties. We operate two client services facilities – one in Orange County (Orange
Community Residence, or “Orange House”) and one in Wake County (Hustead House). We house a total
of 11 clients – men and women 18 years and older – in these two homes for low-income people living
with HIV/AIDS, some of whom are dually or triply diagnosed with mental health and substance abuse
issues.
Orange House is a six-bed licensed family care home located in Carrboro, Orange County, and has held
its license in good standing from the Department of Social Services (DSS) and Division of Facility
Services (DFS) since it opened in 1995. Orange House complies with all staffing, facility and health and
safety standards required by law. It is inspected as frequently as monthly by the DSS to assure residents’
are properly cared for and their rights respected. Annual inspections by the DFS ensure license renewal
standards are met, including health and safety requirements.
Our Client Services programs provide resources to the HIV community within our 11-county reach,
accessing Ryan White & HOPWA funding available to support stable housing for HIV positive
individuals. It is a fact that AIDS and homelessness are intertwined. The costs of health care and
medications for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) are often too high, and PLWHA are in constant
danger of losing their jobs due to discrimination or as a result of frequent health-related absences. As
a result, up to 50 percent of PLWHA in the United States are at risk of becoming homeless (National
Alliance to End Homelessness, 2006).
In addition, a disproportionately large number of homeless people suffer from substance abuse disorders.
Many homeless people inject drugs intravenously, and may share or reuse needles. This practice is
responsible for 13 percent of HIV/AIDS diagnoses in the United States. An additional 50 percent of
cases are a result of male-to-male sexual contact, and 33 percent are due to heterosexual sex (Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention). Unfortunately, the conditions of homelessness may lead to sexual
behaviors that increase the risk of contracting HIV. For example, many shelters are single sex, and most
offer limited privacy, including communal sleeping and bathing. These circumstances make it difficult
for shelter residents to form stable sexual relationships (University of California San Francisco Center for
AIDS Prevention Studies, 2005).
There are many additional challenges for homeless people with HIV/AIDS, including psychological
distress, depression and other psychosocial factors, as well as lack of medical insurance. Appropriate
housing protects individuals from a range of individual and public health threats, including HIV, violence,
harmful drug use and incarceration. And housing – particularly of the type Orange House provides – also
protects and stabilizes individuals, their families and communities.
According to 2010 data from the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
North Carolina is ranked 12th among the 50 states in cumulative reported AIDS cases.
The North Carolina Epidemiologic Profile for HIV/STD Prevention & Care Planning Branch (December
2010) indicates that our state ranks 11th in the nation for the estimated number of persons living with
AIDS.Thanks to the support of individuals, corporations, foundations and Local, State and Federal
Governments The Alliance continues to fullfill our mission in an effort to serve those in need.
We remember those lost, those living and those we must protect. And The Alliance thanks you for
remembering, too!
