The FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology is based upon the Fetal & Infant Mortality Review (FIMR). FIMR is an action-oriented community process that continually assesses, monitors, and works to improve service systems and community resources for women, infants, and families. For more information about FIMR, please visit the National Fetal & Infant Mortality Review National Resource Center at www.nfimr.org.

 

The goal of the FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology is to improve perinatal HIV prevention systems by using the FIMR case review and community action process.

 

The FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology is based on the premise that all cases of perinatal HIV infection in the United States are sentinel events that warrant full review. By collecting comprehensive quantitative and qualitative data about the pregnancy experiences of women with HIV infection, the methodology provides an in-depth look at the systems that result in a perinatal HIV exposure or transmission. This examination allows communities to identify system strengths, missed opportunities for prevention and, more rarely, failures of interventions to prevent perinatal transmission. Communities can then develop and implement improvements to systems of care for women with HIV infection and their infants.

 

Learn more about the FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology and the National Framework to Eliminate Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission, as presented by Margaret Lampe from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Recorded Webinar: December 8, 2010).

 

As documented in FIMR/HIV Pilot Project: Overview and Lessons Learned, three communities (Baton Rouge, LA; Detroit, MI; and Jacksonville, FL) were selected in 2005 to develop and implement the FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology. The experiences of the three pilot sites served to improve the methodology and demonstrate its unique effectiveness in improving system of care for HIV-infected women and their families.

 

For more information about the FIMR/HIV Prevention Methodology, refer to the FIMR/HIV Project Protocol. Please note that it is critical for FIMR/HIV sites to maintain confidentiality throughout the project.

 

For an in-depth guide to implementing and maintaining FIMR/HIV in your community, please refer to our FIMR/HIV Manual of Operations.