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About Us/How to Contact Our Staff

About Us/How to Contact Our Staff

How to Reach Our Staff

The Bureau of HIV and STI Programs Staff Directory is updated on a regular basis and provides the name, job title, area of expertise and contact information of each staff person working within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Bureau of HIV and STI Programs (BHSP).

For general questions about HIV and STI prevention, control and surveillance work within Michigan, please contact BHSP at 517-335-0213.

For questions related to HIV and STI case reporting, general testing information or patient testing or treatment history, please contact BHSP Surveillance at 313-456-1586.

For assistance with follow-up for patients that have been tested and diagnosed with HIV and other STIs, see the MDHHS HIV & STI Outreach Contact Directory.

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What We Do

The Bureau of HIV and STI Programs (BHSP) is part of the MDHHS Public Health Administration.

BHSP focuses its efforts on:

  • The prevention, care and treatment of HIV and STIs.
  • Administering the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program within Michigan.
  • Providing support and consultation to local health departments and other healthcare professionals.
  • Collecting, analyzing and sharing data on HIV and STIs.
  • Implementing evidenced-based programs and strategies to control HIV and STIs.
  • Engaging in special studies related to the control of HIV and STIs.
  • Acting as a liaison with the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) and other federal partners on HIV and STI related issues.

BHSP consists of two divisions: Division of HIV/STI Programs, Client and Partner Services and Division of Data and Operations. The Division of HIV/STI Programs, Client and Partner Services consists of three sections: HIV Care Section, HIV/STI Prevention Section and HIV/STI Client, Partner and Community Outreach Section. The Division of Data and Operations consists of three sections: Operations Section, Integrated Surveillance and IT Section and Epidemiology, Quality and Data Section. For more information about the type of work done by each section, click on each of the headings below.

Division of HIV/STI Programs, Client and Partner Services

  • HIV Care Section

    Continuum of Care (COC) Unit

    The mission of the HIV Continuum of Care Unit is to promote, implement and facilitate health care and support services to improve equity in health outcomes for low-income, underinsured and uninsured people with HIV in Michigan.

    The Continuum of Care Unit provides:

    • Oversight, monitoring and technical assistance to subrecipients on the development, implementation and improvement of Ryan White programming.
    • Technical assistance on the legislative, administrative and fiscal requirements for Ryan White services.

    Michigan Drug Assistance Program (MIDAP) Unit

    The Michigan Drug Assistance Program (MIDAP) Unit is responsible for three separate programs:

    • The Michigan Drug Assistance Program (MIDAP) exists to ensure people with HIV in Michigan, who are otherwise underserved, have access to medication. MIDAP provides access to Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved medications for low-income and uninsured Michigan residents, including temporary medication access for enrollees who may be transitioning between other third-party payers.
    • The Premium Assistance (PA) Program is designed to help people with HIV in Michigan who have access to health insurance (Affordable Care Act/Qualified Health Plans through the Marketplace, Medicare Part C [Advantage Plans] or Medicare Part D) to obtain or maintain coverage. To apply for Premium Assistance, a client must first be eligible, approved and active with MIDAP.
    • The Insurance Assistance Program (IAP), funded through Medicaid, is designed to cover premium costs for people with HIV in Michigan that are too ill to work in their current job or will be too ill to work within the next three months. Clients typically have Medicare Supplemental, an individual plan, Marketplace or COBRA insurance coverage. Clients are not eligible for this program if they are eligible for employer-sponsored insurance.

    HIV Care Special Projects Unit

    The HIV Care Special Projects Unit provides oversight, guidance and ensures compliance for unique projects that aim to improve the health outcomes of people with HIV in Michigan.

    The HIV Care Special Projects Unit:

    • Focuses on implementing projects that address gaps in services that affect people with HIV’s ability to maintain access to health care.
    • Facilitates workforce development and capacity building opportunities for service and medical providers specifically around topics that address social determinates of health.
    • Supports programs within MDHHS that serve people with HIV that extend beyond BHSP.

    Return to Care Unit

    The Return to Care Unit is responsible for overseeing the implementation of comprehensive strategies for linkage to and re-engagement in care activities to align with Data to Care, based on CDC guidance. Program objectives include public health strategies that identify persons with HIV who are not in care, link those not in care to appropriate medical and social services, and ultimately support the HIV care continuum.

    The Return to Care Unit includes:

    • Data to Care — which utilizes HIV surveillance data, clinic appointment data and other treatment and care data to identify individuals who are no longer receiving proper medical care.
    • Data to Care Rx — which utilizes real-time prescription claims data to identify individuals at risk of falling out of care.
    • Working with previous positive individuals who have recently moved into the state of Michigan to ensure linkage and/or re-engagement into care and other coordinated services and resources.

  • HIV/STI Prevention Section

    HIV Prevention and Intervention (PI) Unit

    The HIV Prevention and Intervention Unit activities are centered around decreasing the overall number of new HIV infections, working to suppress overall viral loads and decreasing HIV-related stigma.

    The unit focuses on HIV prevention activities, including:

    • HIV testing.
    • Linking individuals who test positive for HIV to medical care.
    • Alerting individuals who may have been exposed to HIV via Partner Services.
    • Helping individuals remain HIV negative.
    • Providing technical assistance to local health departments, health care systems, community-based organizations, universities and community members.
    • Harm-reduction activities for people at risk for HIV, including syringe services programs (SSPs), counseling and health education, and condom distribution.

    Ending the Epidemic (EHE) Unit

    The primary goals of the Ending the Epidemic Unit are to reduce new infections by 75 percent in Wayne County by 2025 and to reduce new HIV infections by at least 90 percent statewide by 2030.

    Ending the Epidemic Unit activities include:

    • Diagnosing individuals as early as possible to ensure individuals are aware of their status.
    • Treating newly diagnosed or previously diagnosed individuals as soon as possible to achieve viral suppression.
    • Preventing future transmission of HIV by raising awareness and expanding access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and syringe services programs (SSPs).
    • Responding quickly to potential increases in HIV by providing prevention and care resources to the affected community.

    These activities will be achieved by maintaining a community-focused lens and strong community partnerships to ensure all individuals are the recipients of culturally humble, comprehensive HIV prevention and care services.

    STI Interventions Unit

    The STI Interventions Unit works with public and private sector providers, laboratories, universities and national partners to implement activities that impact STI screening/testing, treatment and partner management throughout the state of Michigan.

    Key areas of emphasis include:

    • Ensuring access to services for disproportionately impacted groups including adolescents, men who have sex with men (MSM) and pregnant women.
    • Raising awareness of Expedited Partner Therapy as a partner treatment strategy.
    • Supporting quality STI services in local health departments.
    • Fighting congenital syphilis.
    • Improving adherence to recommended screening and treatment guidelines.
    • Providing training and consultation to internal and external partners.
    • Advising and developing STI screening and treatment policy.

  • HIV/STI Client, Partner and Community Outreach Section

    Client, Partner and Community Outreach Units

    The Client, Partner and Community Outreach Units provide direct service to individuals diagnosed with, or potentially exposed to, STIs, including HIV. Disease Intervention Specialists (DIS) are a specialized team that work to improve health outcomes for their clients and intervene in future transmission by ensuring timely treatment and providing education, counseling and partner management for patients and providers. Unit staff serve as content experts throughout the state.

    • Detroit Client, Partner and Community Outreach Unit
      The Detroit Client, Partner and Community Outreach Unit serves the citizens of Detroit, Hamtramck, Harper Woods, Highland Park and the Grosse Pointes.
    • Region 1 Client, Partner and Community Outreach Unit
      The Region 1 Client, Partner and Community Outreach staff directly serve a total of 15 counties: Jackson, Barry, Eaton, Ingham, Livingston, Shiawassee, Genesee, Saginaw, Oakland, Macomb, St. Clair, Huron, Tuscola, Lapeer and Sanilac. Additionally, through a partnership with Central Michigan Health Department staff, services are provided for all the counties north and east of Kent and Muskegon, including the Upper Peninsula, for a total of 67 counties.
    • Region 2 Client, Partner and Community Outreach Unit
      The Region 2 Client, Partner and Community Outreach staff serves a total of 17 counties: Muskegon, Ottawa, Kent, Ionia, Allegan, Van Buren, Kalamazoo, Calhoun, Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph, Branch, Hillsdale, Lenawee, Monroe, Washtenaw and Wayne. 

    HIV/STI Pediatric Unit

    The HIV/STI Pediatric Unit is a specialized team established to prevent the occurrence, interrupt the transmission and reduce complications of reportable STIs. This team focuses primarily on cases connected to females 13-45 years old, pregnant persons throughout their entire pregnancy and infants with possible perinatal transmission of syphilis and/or HIV.

Division of Data and Operations

  • Operations Section

    Financial Reporting and Analysis Unit

    The Financial Reporting and Analysis Unit is dedicated to the implementation of effective and efficient best practices in financial management, as well as establishing consistency in the application and interpretation of state and federal rules and regulations.

    The Financial Reporting and Analysis Unit is responsible for:

    • Budget development and oversight.
    • Resource development and technical assistance to help ensure subrecipient financial compliance.
    • 340B financial operations and compliance activities.
    • Subrecipient financial monitoring.
    • Completion of financial reporting required for federal grants.

    Grants and Contracts Unit

    The Grants and Contracts Unit provides comprehensive support to the BHSP personnel in identifying, applying for and managing federal, state and private grant funds. Additionally, the Grants and Contracts Unit coordinates subrecipient and recipient contracting of these federal, state and private grant funds to MDHHS partner agencies.

    Training Unit

    The Training Unit is responsible for providing educational opportunities for grantees, providers, BHSP staff and local health departments.

    HIV care and prevention program trainings, such as Case Management (CM) and Counseling, Testing and Referral (CTR) trainings, are provided through the training team in addition to several annual conferences.

  • Integrated Surveillance and IT Section

    HIV/STI Surveillance Unit

    The HIV/STI Surveillance Unit investigates and reports all new and out-of-state adult and pediatric HIV and STI cases according to the public health code and CDC guidance. This includes coordinating with local health departments, community-based organizations, hospitals and private clinical care providers to ensure all lab and relevant patient information is disclosed, accurate and complete.

    The unit combines case reporting with testing and laboratory data in order to achieve the goal of making sure people with HIV or people who have been diagnosed with an STI are treated and initiated into care in a timely manner.

    Specialized Surveillance Unit 

    This Specialized Surveillance Unit conducts specialty surveillance projects to collect enhanced data on HIV, gonorrhea and syphilis cases for adults and pregnant women with syphilis. Supplemental projects in this unit are the Medical Monitoring Project (MMP), STI Surveillance Network (SSuN) and Surveillance of Emerging Threats to Mother and Baby Networks (SET-NET).

    IT and Informatics Unit

    The IT and Informatics Unit is responsible for:

    • Providing BHSP staff access to and support for various IT assets including IT/office equipment, software, systems and processes.
    • System security plans.

    The unit leads IT Initiatives such as the STI/HIV Operations and Resource System (SHOARS) and Michigan Integrated Data Application for STI and HIV (MIDASH).

    Additional projects in this section include:

    Information gathered from SHIELD and NHBS may be used by health care providers, policy planners, prevention planning groups and people with HIV to highlight disparities in care and services, advocate for needed resources, assist in prevention education and service initiatives, and allocate funds for HIV treatment and prevention.

  • Epidemiology, Quality and Data Section

    Quality and Evaluation Unit

    The Quality and Evaluation Unit oversees evaluation and quality management efforts for the BHSP. This includes evaluation plan development and monitoring for an integrated organizational structure that supports active collaboration between HIV and STI care, prevention and surveillance.

    The unit conducts and analyzes numerous surveys on behalf of BHSP, helps to support quality improvement and oversees the HIV and STI Accreditation Program. In addition, the Quality and Evaluation Unit oversees the Ryan White Quality Management Program.

    Epidemiology Unit

    The Epidemiology Unit uses public health data to:

    • Monitor demographic and risk trends in HIV and STI morbidity and care outcomes.
    • Detect and monitor HIV and STI outbreaks.
    • Develop reports to inform HIV and STI prevention and care efforts in the community.
    • Shape HIV and STI health policy.

    Staff in the Epidemiology Unit also assist with monitoring and managing the quality of public health data routinely collected from HIV and STI surveillance and electronic lab reporting activities, HIV and STI testing, HIV and STI Partner Services, and Link-Up Michigan (HIV Data-to-Care).

    Data Management Unit

    The Data Management Unit focuses on the increase in data sharing and integration with other federally funded and state-funded HIV programs to support program evaluation, quality assurance and planning.

    The unit oversees all operations conducted by the Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) team and is responsible for moving laboratories to a production status for Health Level Seven (HL7) reporting, as well as health informatics. Additionally, the staff in the Data Management Unit ensure the operations, training and data integrity for systems used by the Ryan White program.

    Staff in the Data Management unit collaborate with the HIV epidemiologists to maintain quality reporting of HIV data via quality improvements in the Laboratory Management System (LMS), entering and transferring data for the Link-Up Michigan program and other HIV care initiatives, and data matching with STIs.