WHP focuses its research on understanding and effectively addressing trauma – the key underlying cause of illness, death and disability among our patients and people across the country.
Our research demonstrated that women and girls living with HIV have incredibly high rates of trauma. Trauma is defined as “an event, series of events, or set of circumstances [e.g., childhood and adult physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; neglect; loss; community violence; structural violence such as racism and homophobia] that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or threatening and that has lasting adverse effects.” Our research also found that unaddressed trauma leads to HIV medication failure and a host of other poor health outcomes. Most importantly, our research has demonstrated that pragmatic interventions that address trauma are highly effective at improving the health and wellbeing of our patients.
With evidence-based research and partnerships with other organizations, WHP developed a new model of care- trauma-informed primary care. WHP is committed to fully implementing this model in our clinic and serving as a national demonstration site and center for advocacy and dissemination of this model to clinics nationally, for people living with HIV and the far greater population of individuals who have suffered from trauma and violence.