WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 1, 2021)—The American Academy of HIV Medicine is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Jeffrey Kwong as Co-Medical Director of the National HIV and Aging Initiative. A collaboration of the academy, the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) and ACRIA, the initiative is made up of nationally-recognized HIV specialists and gerontologists. The goal of the Initiative is to provide the latest science and clinical guidance for optimal care of older people with HIV.

Launched in 2011 with the website hiv-age.org, the initiative’s first act was publishing “Recommended Treatment Strategies for Clinicians Managing Older Persons with HIV.” With formal clinical guidance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services several years away, these strategies remain the only clinical guidance for treating older adults with HIV.

“As with many aspects of HIV care, care and treatment approaches are constantly changing, and new research emerges on treating the older adult with HIV,” said Bruce J. Packett, executive director of the academy. “The National HIV and Aging Initiative continues to be a valuable resource for medical providers by regularly issuing updated clinical content, and we welcome Dr. Kwong as Co-Medical Director and recognize the unique perspective he brings to guiding the expansion of our work in this space.”

Kwong, a widely respected academic in HIV treatment and prevention is also a leading expert in the provision of care to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community and focuses on older LGBT adults. His work includes the feasibility and benefit of nurse-led models of care for older LGBT adults and he currently serves as a Professor at the Rutgers School of Nursing where he was also the program director of the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Program.

Kwong earned his doctoral degree from the University of Colorado and his master’s degree in nursing from the University of San Francisco. He also holds a master’s degree in public health and a bachelor’s degree in social welfare from the University of California. DKwong is a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), is certified by the American Nurse Credentialing Center, the HIV/AIDS Nursing Certification Board, and is credentialed as an HIV Specialist by the American Academy of HIV Medicine.

Kwong joins Dr. Meredith Green, Assistant Professor of Medicine at the UC San Francisco School of Medicine as Co-Medical Director, along with a diverse team of experts in HIV and Gerontology to lead the National HIV and Aging Initiative.

Click here to visit the National HIV and Aging Initiative site, which is housed on the American Academy of HIV Medicine’s Provider Resource Center.