I contacted SAAF on September 18th, 2020 to update my intake as it had expired and I was in need of routine dental care. So I connected with my caseworker at SAAF. After some small talk we began the intake. She then requested my current Social Security income and stated not to include what I do on the side. First off I took offense to the fact that she would assume that I would be doing something on the side. I am disabled and to do so it would require either illegal acts or something on a cash basis. I don't do either. That would be defrauding the government. To state the income question in such a manner was like it was acceptable to misrepresent my income when applying for assistance for funding through the Ryan White Care Act to meet my preventive dental needs. As the conversation continued told her that while in lockdown due to the current pandemic I had reached out to other "Long Term Survivors" of HIV/AIDS. It's been almost 40 years for myself and I was hoping to network people and bring people together that had this one thing in common. What I found was a world full of substance and alcohol abuse among other issues. It was like a forgotten people, I was truly sad I shared some of the stories with her.. Especially one I shared with her that someone had shared with me about a young man that had overdosed at a club called ACI of an overdose he was just 29. I had never been to this place but heard of it. I told her the story and that I looked up the club but it was permanently closed. She stated "Oh no it just moved to the south side it's called The Z now" She then proceeded to state that one of her best friends was the manager there and gave her a tour of the new facility when they were closed for cleaning. She stated : I don't know how guys can do it in the open like that as a women I would need privacy". I was a bit alarmed there was no concern about the fact that this place was basically a drug den where drug use drives uninhibited sex acts no doubt leading to major spikes in HIV cases as well as other communicable diseases and she was besties with the man supplying the entertainment. There's a lot to be said about the statement "You are the company you keep". She the gave me the address and said "In case you want to go" Really? I think I would pass on that. So I contact her for a dental referral and get referred to a drug filled gay bath house where people get sick, die or both. So she works for an organization that's main objective is to reduce and help eliminate HIV/Aids and other diseases in the community yet she's promoting a gay bath house. Go figure why there is always an increase in new HIV cases every year in the area. The objective is to help restore people not detour people. But I guess if your only job is to help eradicate a disease that you make a living off of then it would be beneficial to promote bad behavior and substance abuse to guarantee increased client numbers with new HIV infections including other diseases as well and guaranteeing increased government funding dollars. Not to mention job security. Has SAAF forgotten the mission? Has it become so antiquated and obsolete or have these uncaring newbies ever even knew what the mission was? Do they even care? The elders of the community are the ones who have faced the worst of the disease. We started these organizations. What you see now was never the intent. It's sad how they went from our mission to making it their business opportunity. HIV/AIDS for the most part is over it's time for this agency to evolve and embrace change for the benefit of their clients. We now take one pill a day to prevent contracting the disease and in most cases 1 pill a day if the disease is contracted. But the client base at SAAF is enabled or should I say disabled by the staff. Many get SSI, free (Hopwa) housing apartments and 3 meals a day with basically no services to help them break the pattern. It's over SAAF stand up, man up make positive change and put a real effort forward to close the chapter on this disease and the mess you have played a roll in the continuance of allowing, promoting and enabling behavioral issues for so long that set these clients up for a life of failure. You have held them at the same point for so long it's all they know. These clients don't even slightly resemble the pictures you post on social media. Don't hold the next generation captive by a diagnosis in the sake of funding numbers and dollars. It's time to move on in a positive manner. Prevention, treatment and restoration in a caring environment. And yes, finally I did get my dental referral but declined any services from SAAF because in my opinion SAAF does not have the best interest of their clients in mind at all and SAAF is not a safe place, And finally nothing is confidential. Know that as fact before you go.
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- EIN 74-2427853
- (210) 225-4715
- 818 E Grayson St San Antonio TX 78208-1013 USA
- www.sanantonioaids.org
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Nonprofit Overview
Causes: AIDS, Education, Health, Hospices, Human Services
Mission: The san antonio aids foundation has a dual mission - to provide compassionate medical care and social services to people with human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) and the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (aids), and to help prevent the spread of hiv through education, counseling and testing.
Programs: Client servicescase management at 818 grayson street serves approximately 1,200 people per year to connect clients to needed resources: housing, prescription assistance, doctors' appointments and medications/treatments adherence, applications for financial assistance and more. In 2016, saaf provided: case management to 838 individuals from san antonio and bexar county and non-medical case managment to 627 unduplicated clients; and 1,040 months of tenant based rental assistance; and emergency financial assistance to 85 unduplicated clients. Carson house transitional housing facility, which can house up to 20 people at any time. - carson house is a 90-day housing program for hiv-positive homeless people. - carson house is lgbt-friendly and is the only shelter in the city that houses transgender adults according to their self-identified gender. - clients learn to develop a budget, apply for jobs, and develop life/work skills while applying for stable housing. In 2016, saaf provided 5,856 days of transitional housing to 123 unduplicated clients.
healthclinical programs: - specialty nursing and hospice care - ryan white outpatient ambulatory clinic: opened winter 2016. Providing medical care to hiv-positive patients, including on-site laboratory testing and retail pharmacy- oral health referrals in 2016, saaf provided 5,856 housing days of specialty nursing and hospice care to 63 unduplicated clients and oral health care services to 693 unduplicated clients. Nourishing saaf hot meal program offering three free hot meals a day, 365 days a year, to anyone in the community who is hiv-positive and who obtains a meal card through case management. -- more than 2,000 packages of groceries are handed out each year, one day/month, as a part of our mobile pantry program, in partnership with the san antonio food bank. In 2016, saaf provided 35,410 hot meals to 443 unduplicated clients.
preventionsaaf's testing department provides anonymous and confidential testing for hiv and syphilis 6 days per week on site, as well through a mobile testing van. Rapid hiv testing results are ready in 60 seconds. Test counseling is available in english and spanish. In 2016, 6,649 hiv tests were performed, identifying 47 new hiv-positive results. 2,292 syphilis tests were administered with 141 positive results. "you're the cure" is a united way funded hiv/std prevention education program. The program serves youth ages 11-18 in 8 school districts in and around bexar county and reaches about 20,000 people per year. We also work with drug treatment programs, adult and juvenile correctional facilities and vocational schools. In addition to the prevention education, we provide an advocate which is a person living with hiv/aids to share their personal story about what it's like living with the virus. In 2016, saaf provided 19,735 individuals with prevention education.