The Sangam Project, funded by the federal Office of Minority Health, is aimed at achieving a more comprehensive and culturally competent approach to health care by ensuring a seamless continuum of prevention, care and treatment for A&PIs at high risk or living with HIV/AIDS in Santa Clara County and integrating this approach into mental health, substance use, primary care, and other community based health and social services.

The Sangam Project is a collaboration between Asian & Pacific Islander Wellness Center, Partners in AIDS Care and Education Clinic and Asian Americans for Community Involvement. The Sangam Project takes its name from the Sanskrit word meaning “confluence”—a place where many rivers meet and combine.

It builds off of the foundation created by and lessons learned in Santa Clara County from FLARE (Fostering Leadership for Asian & Pacific Islanders through Research and Evaluation), a previously funded capacity building assistance program.

The Sangam Project:

• Develops Leadership—expanding a cohesive network of the Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Coalition of Santa Clara County.
• Promotes Healthy Behaviors and Service Utilization—improving service delivery through specialized anti-stigma capacity development and sponsoring an Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day event.
• Documents and Disseminates Best Practices—creating a toolkit of project materials, processes and evaluation methods and presenting lessons learned at regional and national conferences.
• Provides Technical Assistance and Capacity Development—creating group level trainings and giving one-on-one technical assistance based on a comprehensive needs assessment.

Find out more about the Sangam Project’s successes and lessons learned:
http://www.apiwellness.org/pdf/Santa_Clara_Cty_NA_Report_Final.pdf

Learn how to create a coalition: Sangam Project - Creating a Coalition Toolkit