The organization known as Better Existence with HIV ( BEHIV ) recently tapped staff members Eric Nelson and Julie Supple as its new executive director and program director, respectively. Windy City Times talked with them and got the lowdown on the direction they hope to take the agency.
WCT: So what are your responsibilities as program director and what would you like to see done?
Julie Supple: My responsibilities are basically to oversee the staff in this office. I supervise the managers who oversee the workers. I'll be sitting in on different meetings, such as ones involving fundraising.
Eric Nelson: She'll also be coordinating all the direct services, so if it falls outside of development or human resources.
JS: I'll be advocating for the changes that'll be happening federally, with all the money that's been cut and the changes that will be coming. [ For example, ] money for massage therapy was cut recently, but we're working on maintaining it; art therapy money was cut and then replenished. Whether it's case management or mental health, they're going to be moved into a [ separate ] component where there's a medical aspect, so we have to regroup and figure out a way to do what we can do.
EN: Our clients see so many different health-care providers ( such as CORE or private facilities ) , so we have to work with the providers to make sure the clients keep their appointments, for example. We don't want case managers running from provider to provider and have no time to talk with their clients.
WCT: Is that your biggest immediate challenge?
EN: That's probably it, in terms of funding. The federal government cuts funding, and the state picks up some of it, but it's hard for them to do. The city did a very good job of providing prevention funding last year, but now there's more need for housing.
JS: The biggest reason I wanted to do this is because services here are dwindling and the needs are [ increasing ] . The word out in the community [ does not reflect ] what's going on; a lot of people are sick and many are going to continue to be sick, as the transmission rates are still up. The needs are up and the services are going down—something is wrong with that picture. It's very frustrating.
EN: I don't think we're in any danger of going away, but we need to look at how everything's changing. Our clients need more services. Clients need mental health counseling, housing or help with substance-abuse issues. People are living longer and they need more services because they have more issues to deal with; if someone doesn't have a home or is dealing with domestic violence, that person is not [ necessarily ] concerned with taking medication.
WCT: Your [ Thorndale ] location will be expanding. Are you looking to eventually open other offices? [ BEHIV currently has two offices, in Chicago and Evanston. ]
EN: Not right now. We don't know who's going to be around five or 10 years from now. A lot of agencies don't have the diversified funding streams that we have, and if they're relying on Ryan White funding for 95 percent of its [ monies ] and it gets cut—that's something we're all looking at.
BEHIV was founded in Evanston; now, most of our clients are in the Chicago area. We've changed over the years, and we're possibly ready to change again if need be.
See www.behiv.org .