Request for Proposals: Sexual Health and Aging: Resources and Training for Clinical Providers (SHARP)

The SHARP Program will support the development and delivery of community-informed clinical trainings and provider- and patient-facing resources to enhance the capacity of health care practitioners who provide primary care services to conduct affirming sexual history-taking conversations and implement routine opt-out HIV and STI screening among people ages 50 years and older. Older adults need access to HIV and STI prevention services and resources, especially as research has shown that a significant portion of older adults are sexually active. Despite accessing health care more often than other age groups, older adults are screened for HIV less often than younger adults and their sexual health needs are frequently overlooked in clinical settings. Additionally, few older adults report ever having discussed sexual health with their primary care providers or been offered an HIV test. The SHARP Program aims to ensure sexual health care is more accessible to older adults by equipping primary care providers with training and resources to facilitate affirming sexual history-taking conversations and provide HIV and STI prevention and treatment education. This RFP seeks to fund one organization with experience providing training to health care providers to: 1) Develop clinical trainings and provider- and patient-facing resources to support primary care providers in initiating affirming sexual health conversations and implementing routine opt-out HIV and STI screening among older adult patients. 2) Promote and deliver in-person, virtual, and self-paced clinical trainings and digital resources to primary care providers in NYC. 3) Link interested primary care providers to NYC Health Department resources to enhance implementation of affirming sexual history-taking conversations, HIV and STI prevention and treatment education, and routine opt-out HIV and STI screening among older adults into clinical practice.