Abstract

Abstract The substance abuse treatment and HIV health care systems have different treatment approaches, and many HIV-infected substance users fall through the cracks between systems. Providers are often challenged by the difficulty of engaging and retaining HIV-infected substance users in care and working across disciplines to coordinate services. A Kaleidoscope of Careis a cross-disciplinary curriculum in HIV and substance use, designed to train HIV health care and substance abuse treatment professionals in providing better care to the clients they share in common. It applies adult learning principles to engage diverse professionals in building skills to promote health and adherence, engagement and retention in care, harm reduction, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Early evaluation of the curriculum indicates that it has enhanced knowledge and built skills in serving HIV-infected substance users among providers from multiple disciplines.