Public Transportation

In addition to alliances with the church, the “bridge to prevention” campaign needs to collaborate with public transportation as well. 21.52% of the residents within 15233 use public transportation as their primary form of transport (Table 1.9). Seeing as public transportation plays such a substantial role in this community, it would be helpful to use it as a device in the combat of AIDS. The Port Authority of Pittsburgh runs the bus lines throughout Allegheny County. These lines are significant in low-income minority communities, and help the spread of AIDS through the transport to bathhouses and gay bars. By involving the port authority in HIV/AIDS prevention, Pittsburgh can attempt to reduce the spread of infection. To do this, condom boxes would need to installed within the bus lines running into and out of 15233. These boxes would be mounted on a wall opposite to the opening bus door, and would carry Durex condoms and literature on safe sex and HIV prevention. Durex condoms would be used due to their proven sustainability in preventing transmission of disease and pregnancy, and the literature would be directly from the “Bridge to Prevention” campaign13. The free condoms can hopefully help to induce safer sex practices in this community, since they are easily accessible and have no cost whatsoever on the individual.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Port_Authority_bus_Pittsburgh_01.JPG/800px-Port_Authority_bus_Pittsburgh_01.JPG

http://condomgalaxy.com/images/durex-dry-nonlub.jpg

http://www.nan.on.ca/upload/images/aids---pamphlets.jpg

Also, the literature on the bus lines can help to inform the 41% of Northside community members who never received a high school diploma about the causes and prevention strategies involved with HIV/AIDS. This type of a strategy proves to be helpful because it will allow the community at large to obtain resources for learning about HIV/AIDS and on preventing the spread of this disease. The literature presented on the Port Authority can also possibly help to address the conspiracy beliefs associated with condom use and HIV/AIDS in the black community in addition to the group counseling in the church12. These pamphlets and condoms would be low cost, and the installation of the boxes should not be more than $200 per bus. If we install these devices on 6 buses, there will be an installation fee off $1,200, in addition to a practice fee of $125 per 1000 Durex condoms and a printing fee of approximately $600 for 10,000 pamphlets14. Overall, on a yearly basis, this should yield a grand total of approximately $7,800 – but $1,200 worth of that total will not have to be spent in upcoming years. In the end, the cost would be $6,600 for every year after, therefore lowering the original cost.