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Posted June 12, 2012

The Health Policy Project and the Eurasian Harm Reduction Network are pleased to announce the release of the Policy Analysis and Advocacy Decision Model for People Who Inject Drugs (PWID), developed with support from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

To date, analysis and reporting of policy barriers to services for PWID has been limited to methodologies developed for donor- and country-specific reports. The decision model fills this gap by providing a systematic structure and methodology, grounded in international human rights and best practices, that allows for policy analysis and comparison across country and regional borders.

The decision model is a collection of tools designed to help stakeholders create an inventory of country policies, analyze these policies against international best practices and human rights frameworks, assess policy implementation, and create a strategic advocacy plan. The primary goal of the model is to identify the policies that most directly affect access to and sustainability of key services and the needs and opportunities for policy advocacy that will improve access to services in both the near and long term.

The decision model identifies the existence of restrictive, poorly written, or absent policies that may serve as obstacles for programs to provide both sustained and accessible HIV counseling and testing, antiretroviral therapy, hepatitis, tuberculosis, opioid substitution therapy, and sterile needle and syringe services for PWID. It also addresses issues such as stigma and discrimination, gender-based violence, and criminal justice systems.

This decision model was developed with co-funding from the USAID Eastern Europe and Eurasia Bureau and the USAID Office of HIV/AIDS. Representatives from the following groups provided instrumental feedback and guidance for the document: USAID, Open Society Foundations, AIDS Projects Management Group, United Nations Office on Drug and Crime, Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Clinton Health Access Initiative, U.S. Centers for Disease Control Global AIDS Program, International HIV/AIDS Alliance in Ukraine, Ukrainian Institute of Public Health Policy, and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network.

Co-authors Kipling Beardsley and Alisher Latypov added, "We are particularly pleased with the synergy that has taken place between HPP and EHRN and the technical and region-specific expertise that this has brought to the document and its rollout and implementation."

While designed for global adaptation and application, the decision model specifically addresses policy barriers common in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. A Russian translation is underway.

The document can be found at:
www.healthpolicyproject.com/t/HIVPolicyModels.cfm and
www.harm-reduction.org/ehrn-publications.html.

Questions or comments can be directed to the authors at PolicyInfo@futuresgroup.com.