Studying the effectiveness of trial drugs aimed at preventing HIV/AIDS in people most impacted by the virus seems logical – but for a number of reasons that’s not always been possible. The tide is slowly changing though, and now through the East Bay Advanced Care clinic, part of Sutter’s Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, people who are disproportionally affected by HIV and who have been typically under-represented in previous HIV prevention research, are more likely to take part in studies.
The EBAC clinic is on Alta Bates Summit’s Oakland campus and is staffed by a multidisciplinary team of professionals who offer patients comprehensive services throughout the continuum of HIV disease. EBAC offers people living with HIV and AIDS hands-on support, medical treatments, complementary therapies, educational services, and access to clinical trials.
Recent findings from HIV/AIDS research and clinical trials in which EBAC patients have participated have contributed to U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of cabotegravir, the first long-acting, injectable drug for HIV prevention, helping bring greater access to HIV/AIDS care in the East Bay among these vulnerable groups.