NC HIV Public Health Collaborative SWG

The NC HIV Public Health Collaborative Scientific Working Group (SWG) is a novel and formal partnership between the UNC CFAR and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) designed to help prevent the spread of HIV infection in North Carolina. The group utilizes a multidisciplinary approach to describe and understand HIV transmission in NC, and works to better understand the “limitations of the data” that currently exists in order to develop and target state-specific prevention interventions. The NC HIV Public Health Collaborative SWG offers a unique and powerful model that can be applied to other US states and regions of the world.

The unique strength of the NC HIV Public Health Collaborative SWG is its combination of access to real world data sources that academic-based modelers, epidemiologists, laboratory-based scientists and behaviorists need to characterize existing paradigms and inform prevention science. The SWG fosters innovative research and aims to:

  • Improve measurements along the HIV Care continuum to support the development and evaluation of research projects fostered by the SWG
  • Combine novel biomarkers including trial phylogenics with HIV surveillance activities to better detect and intervene on HIV transmission hotspots
  • Foster collaborative, cross-institutional research
  • Carry mentoring of young investigators, strategic planning, and milestone evaluation

Group Leadership

 Heidi Swygard, MD

HeidiSwygardWEB Dr. Heidi Swygard is a Clinical Associate Professor at University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine, a consultant for the  NC Department of Health and Human Services HIV/STD Care branch, and Director of the UNC CFAR NC HIV Public Health Collaborative Scientific Working Group. She has worked closely with the state and UNC CFAR to develop data use agreements, policies and procedures to facilitate HIV prevention research and implementation of evidence-based interventions. As the director of the NC HIV Public Health Collaborative SWG, she is working on developing and translating HIV phylogeny work into practicable public health interventions for HIV network tracing and partner notification and testing.

For inquiries, please contact Prema Menezes