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HIV Primary Care Track

Mission

The mission of the HIV Primary Care Track is to train future family physicians with an interest in HIV medicine to provide comprehensive and high-quality care to HIV-infected individuals and their families.

Our Training Site

Our training site is the Pittsburgh AIDS Center for Treatment PACT (PACT) clinic. This Ryan White clinic is an NCQA-certified level 3 Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH). It provides primary care to over 1500 HIV-infected persons. Individuals receive comprehensive HIV care from an experienced team of providers. This clinic serves as the major training site for infectious disease fellows and primary care residents in HIV care. On-site mental health services, adherence counseling, specialty gynecological care, and social work services are provided. Inpatient hospital care and 7 day-24 hour coverage are provided by the same team of physicians. Medical Insurance is not required for an individual to be eligible to receive care at PACT.

Review additional information on the PACT website. 

The PACT clinic is affiliated with the HRSA-funded Pennsylvania/Mid-Atlantic AIDS Education and Training Center.

Program Summary

In the HIV Primary Care Track, selected residents will provide continuity care for a cohort of at least 25 HIV-infected patients. They will receive enhanced training in HIV/AIDS, STIs, Hepatitis C, TB, and the care of marginalized populations including racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities. This will complement the training in comprehensive and high-quality family medicine.

At the conclusion of their residency, HIV primary care track residents will meet the requirements to sit for both:

  1. The American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) examination
  2. The HIV Specialty Certification examination from the American Academy of HIV Medicine.

Track Faculty

The HIV primary care track is directed by Dr. Cara McAnaney. Dr. McAnaney is a board-certified family physician and an HIV/AIDS specialist. She serves as a faculty member in the University of Pittsburgh's Department of Family Medicine and at the UPMC McKeesport Family Medicine Residency Program. Other key faculty members include Dr. Peter J. Veldkamp, Associate Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases), and Dr. Deborah McMahon, Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases).

Details

The HIV/AIDS clinic (PACT) will serve as a second continuity clinic site for HIV Primary Care Track residents during the second and third year of residency training in Family Medicine. Residents in this track will also participate in a comprehensive HIV primary care curriculum. Track residents participate in monthly group didactic sessions reviewing core aspects of care of people living with HIV and gain experience teaching their peers at UPMC family medicine residencies in the Pittsburgh area. They participate in the registry management of a cohort of patients living with HIV and in community engagement programs focused on at-risk populations. Quality improvement projects with a focus on patients living with or at risk for HIV are required either at the PACT clinic or at the resident’s primary continuity site.

Curricular Outline

PGY-2

  • 4-week HIV primary care rotation at PACT (at the beginning of the second year)
  • Weekly continuity clinic (1 half-day per week, unless on a restricted rotation [e.g. inpatient family medicine, night float, inpatient pediatrics, etc.])
  • Residents can choose a manageable scholarly project related to HIV primary care (QI projects are particularly encouraged).
  • Monthly didactic learning sessions

PGY-3

  • Weekly continuity HIV clinic (1 half-day per week, unless on a restricted rotation) [e.g. inpatient family medicine, night float, inpatient pediatrics, etc)
  • Thirty-minute presentation at HIV provider case conference
  • Regular participation in teaching/learning case conferences and other didactics that address core topics
  • Teach at least two didactic sessions to family medicine residents on HIV-related topics
  • Earn at least 30 HIV-specific CME credits over the course of PGY2 and PGY3 (Resident will attend one of the HIV national educational conferences in either San Francisco or New York)
  • Unless otherwise stated all of the above objectives and requirements are mandatory for completion of the HIV Primary Care Track.

Evaluation

  1. Meet all core FM residency requirements as detailed by the residency program
  2. Meet curricular objectives of the track
  3. Maintain a weekly longitudinal HIV clinic for at least 1 year. Residents will be expected to assume responsibility for high-quality and comprehensive HIV primary care for their patient panel. It will be expected that any absences from the clinic are brought to the attention of the track director in advance.
  4. Meeting all the AAHIVM credentialing exam requirements including HIV-related CME and patient volume expectations

How to Apply

PGY-1 family medicine residents from any of the UPMC Family Medicine Residency Programs (McKeesport, Shadyside, St. Margaret) will be eligible to apply for the HIV Primary Care track.

All interested applicants should provide a one-page statement of their career goals, reasons for wanting to enter the track, and past experiences, and will have an interview with the track director.

Currently, our capacity to offer this track is limited. As a result, the track director will select the candidate based on their qualifications as mentioned above and their interview assessment. A letter from the program director supporting the applicant's interest in pursuing this training will also be expected.