2023 is just around the corner and we think it’s the right time to review our Impact on the community we belong to and help with a lot of passion. As we reflect on this year that is ending, we want to share with everyone how grateful we are to our employees, volunteers, organizations, and businesses who have given us a hand and supported us with their professionalism and gift of serving for the better well-being of all. From the provision of services for HIV prevention and care, passing by the creation of the Free Health Insurance for All Program to initiating interdisciplinary, artistic, and cultural explorations with a vision of the future, this has been an exceptional year. High Impacto was named one of the best facilities to get testing for Sexual Transmission Infections (STI) in Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood Florida by Testing.com. Testing.com conducted the study to increase awareness about community-based STD testing centers in Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale. The online guide is a valuable resource and was designed to help people make informed decisions about testing options.
High Impacto presented the “IMPACTO AWARDS” for the first time during our “NOCHE DE IMPACTO”, an event that started in 2022 and will be held annually. Thanks to the entire team at Hunters Wilton Manors for your contribution to donating the usage of this wonderful venue which was the key component to the success of our event. High Impacto created “IMPACT NIGHT” and the IMPACTO AWARDS to honor the people who have been helping the organization achieve its Vision and Mission while providing free services to communities most in need. See you next year for the second annual IMPACT NIGHT event. The winner of the 2022 IMPACT/Guidance Award category was presented to Evelyn Ullah: a person who drives the High Impacto Vision. The 2022 IMPACT/Encourage Award was presented to Francisco Gómez, a person who vitalizes the High Impacto Mission, and the 2022 IMPACT/Ambassador Award was presented to Kelvin Bautista, an individual who has been doing community advocacy aligned with High Impacto programs and services. Please join us in celebrating those incredible Latino leaders.
We look forward to honoring community members with our IMPACTO awards while once again congratulating two members of our team who were honored by Latinos en Acción (LEA). LEA is part of the Broward County HIV Prevention Planning Council. LEA commemorated NLAAD with its 2022 Hispanic HIV Leadership Awards event and honored five individuals who have done an exceptional job. Our Medical Director and Health Coordinator were the winners of two of those awards. Please join us in congratulating Ivan Fernandez, Health Coordinator, and Dr. Patrick Dreher, Medical Director.
During 2022, our employees remained steadfast in demonstrating their ability and professionalism to serve while pointing out the need to incorporate new and dynamic employees in 2023. So, the first piece of good news is to keep an eye on the job opportunities we will have in 2023. We continue our HIV Telehealth Services initiated in the wake of COVID-19 and continue to provide PrEP, HIV prevention medications, as well as HIV treatment. The High Impacto website has been revitalized and now presents a new image that makes it friendlier and allows us to remain united with our customers on the Internet and connect with excellent organizations that are just a click away. As of November 30, we have provided 100% of the HIV tests promised by the end of 2022 and we have met our goal of 100% of clients linked to care and treatment adherence. We also linked 90% of our clients with an HIV-negative diagnosis to PrEP and they stayed adherent to it. We were also able to give health insurance to our eligible clients who contacted us, and we paid 100% of their monthly health insurance premiums to 100% of the clients who contacted us and were eligible for health insurance. This affirms not only care for their sexual health but also their overall health care.
In 2022, online messaging was an extraordinary way to come together and make sure the community was educated not only on HIV prevention and stigma reduction but also on the intersection of HIV, COVID-19, and new infections that attacked our community like monkeypox. On our bilingual online messaging screen, we continue to have En Confianza in two formats: an email newsletter and the Podcast on our YouTube channel along with Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Using these online platforms allowed us to post 1,163 messages using the same number of ads and generated 218,176 impressions. An impression is a metric used by us to quantify the number of digital views or interactions of people who follow us and who are educated on our online places. That is to say that in 2022 High Impacto was able to educate online 218,176 people who visited us on our social media outlets.
Our growing Business Responding to AIDS (BRTA) program continues to help us reach vulnerable populations who are afraid and distrustful of government facilities. In 2022 we also managed to establish a network of 12 businesses where their employees, families, friends, and clients have access to HIV services and comprehensive referral services not only for health but also for social services. We were able to distribute 72,220 condoms and count 3628 people educated on prevention and stigma reduction strategies. Our Amigos initiative again reached 100% of what was planned for 2022 by adding 132 new members who, following the Social Network Strategy for HIV Testing (SNS), have been able to send their friends to be tested by our team of certified HIV counselors and help them access the essential services they need. From February 2019 to November 2022 our NHS has a total of 552 people who have helped at least one of their friends to know their HIV status.
In case you have not visited our offices yet, please do not hesitate to request a tour. You can request a tour through our website www.Highimpacto.org or call us at 954-947-3603, you will be surprised to see that we now have more spacious offices and are providing services safely following all social distancing protocols for COVID-19. Our offices are located at 1001 W Cypress Rd #308. Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309. In 2023 we will have our Wellness Center open in Ft. Lauderdale, it will be offering primary medical services and all services for the prevention and treatment of HIV. You can become part of the community that is receiving our Referral Services for essential services such as Housing, Employment Services, Health/Medical Insurance, Mental Health, Substance Abuse Treatment, Transportation to Medical Appointments, Violence Prevention, Food Banks, Smoking Cessation Assistance, Latinx ARTE (HIV Support Group) and many other services. You can also become a High Impacto Health Ambassador and receive incentives for helping your community prevent and treat their illnesses!
The Board of Directors, High Impacto staff, and volunteers are looking forward to a healthy and prosperous new year for all and that 2023 will bring better and abundant projects! We hope to see you soon as part of our happy and healthy community. So please be sure to check out all our services at https://highimpacto.org/ or contact us at our email info@highimpacto.org or by calling us at 954-947-3603.
Stay tuned and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Tik Tok where we are as @highimpacto. Also, look for our institutional program En Confianza on YouTube