Germany – Network Plus (Netzwerk Plus)

Network Plus seeks to educate healthcare professionals, especially physicians in private practice, on HIV and AIDS with the goal of ending stigma in healthcare settings.
More specifically, the initiative objectives are as follows:
1. Destigmatization of people living with HIV/AIDS in medical care.
2. Raising awareness, taking into account the psychological implications of general practitioners and specialists on the topic of HIV/AIDS.
3. Improvement of the healthcare structure.

• Context
  Network Plus was created further to discussions during a symposium in Germany on the topic of “HIV: Self-Help & Psyche”, which highlighted the need in Frankfurt am Main and the Rhine-Main area to improve the care structure of people living with HIV.
• Introduction

  The “Network Plus” project is aimed at specialist and general practitioner practices as well as other institutions in the extended health sector and is intended to impart up-to-date knowledge about HIV and AIDS as well as current topics in the field of the LGBTIQ+ community. The objective is to create an unprejudiced space for people living with HIV and to reduce the associated fears of those affected about the health care system.

  To that end, a working group was created under the leadership of AIDS-Hilfe-Frankfurt (AHF) e.V. to design a training course.

• Aims

  Network Plus seeks to educate healthcare professionals, especially physicians in private practice, on HIV and AIDS with the goal of ending stigma in healthcare settings.

  More specifically, the initiative objectives are as follows:

  1. Destigmatization of people living with HIV/AIDS in medical care.
  2. Raising awareness, taking into account the psychological implications of general practitioners and specialists on the topic of HIV/AIDS.
  3. Improvement of the healthcare structure.
• Methods

  The online training course has a modular structure and offers an up-to-date specialist and basic knowledge about HIV and AIDS.

  Modules are continuously adapted and thus correspond to guideline-based medicine in the treatment of people living with HIV.

  After completing the module, each practitioner is delivered a certificate. The publication on the network is intended to make it easier for people living with HIV to find a trustworthy practice for their concerns. In this way, we ensure that the responsible practitioners act without prejudice and that their knowledge of HIV and AIDS is up-to-date.

• Results

  After completion of the seminar, participating doctors are added to a list of trained practitioners to offer people living with HIV easier access to healthcare professionals who have extensive knowledge of dealing with needs of the community, in a sensitive manner.

  The certificate of completion also grants access to continuing education points that credited by the State Medical Association of Hesse.