HIV – ENTRE HERMANOS

Community Corner—Entre Hermanos

Posted on September 19, 2024September 26, 2024 by Matthew Bromley

by Seattle Human Services on September 3, 2024

Community Corner highlights the work of Seattle Human Services’ community partners in their own words. Our goal is to gather stories and photos that illustrate their amazing work on behalf of the people of Seattle. This post highlights Entre Hermanos.

*Entre Hermanos team during our Annual Pride Picnic in the Park.*

What is the role your organization fulfills in your community?

Entre Hermanos is a “by and for” community-based organization that offers Latine cultural and health services to the LGBTQ+ community in a space that is affirming, safe, and supportive. We improve health and well-being for the Latine LGBTQ+ community through wraparound support services, legal immigration consultation and representation, support for prevention of HIV and care for those living with HIV, media outreach on Latine and LGBTQ+ issues, education and advocacy for human rights and civic engagement, and community building and cultural celebration.

Every year we reach more than 7,000 people in the greater Seattle community, including 1,000 who receive direct medical and non-medical higher-touch interventions through STD testing, PrEP navigation, and HIV medical case management; and 6,000 through light-touch outreach and education via radio and social media, LGBTQ+, Cultural, and Health fairs, and condom distribution. Our services are free of charge, without regard to immigration status or insurance coverage, and all activities are conducted in Spanish and Central American indigenous languages.

How does your partnership with Seattle Human Services (HSD) assist you in that role?

Entre Hermanos is grateful for a supportive community, talented and committed staff, and the support of health champions like HSD. As an organization, we are dedicated to ensuring that our clients’ holistic and intersecting needs can be met, and HSD has helped us do this through funding our projects like Arts in the Park, Health and Education campaigns, and more. We’ve also benefitted from the partnership through increasing our connections to the City’s leadership, especially through our involvement in LGBTQ+ initiatives.

What is your organization’s origin story?

We were created by a group of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Latinos/as who were responding to the HIV/AIDS crisis in Washington state in 1990. Our founders sought to address the need for social, educational, and health support services with programs deeply connected to our language and cultural roots, surrounded by the warmth, love, and care of our LGBTQ+ siblings being affected by HIV/AIDS. While we started as an organization that serves people with HIV, we now attend to the many ways our clients are vulnerable while remaining true to our mission to promote the health and well-being of the Latine LGBTQ+ community. For more than three decades, we have honored that legacy by continuing to raise HIV awareness, provide sexual health education, and basic needs support to our people while providing culturally and linguistically sensitive services for clients who face complex marginalization due to their immigration and documentation status, sexuality, poverty, or gender.

How has your organization grown or developed in recent years?

In our 33rd year of service, Entre Hermanos continues marching into the future, on the road to justice, striving for progress, and expanding our support services to sexually diverse Latinx individuals in Washington. In recent years, we’ve added new programs like housing assistance for clients on PrEP, legal representation focused on transgender asylum seekers, and trans peer navigation. Our programs have had a lot of support within the city of Seattle, and we’re excited to announce that in the next year we are replicating this program model and opening an office in rural Yakima. Many Hispanic/Latinx people live in rural Yakima, but members of the LGBTQ+ community in that area have little access to culturally and linguistically sensitive services that are LGBTQ+ affirming. Since 2019, we have grown from eight staff members to 29 staff members, and there is still a great need to increase our services.

*Entre Hermanos employees: Elio, Yesenia, Alejandra, and Alec during LatinX Pride 2024 outreach*.

Why is it important for HSD and City of Seattle taxpayers to invest in community-led work?

Being led by members of the immigrant Latine LGBTQ+ community means we have the in-house Spanish-language, cultural competency, and expertise in LGBTQ issues that equips us to meet the overlapping needs of clients who are new immigrants, Spanish-speakers, and individuals who are undocumented, uninsured, and transgender. We have seen many situations where clients come to us and finally feel safe enough to be themselves fully, share their needs and accept help. Having HSD and City of Seattle taxpayers invest in community-led work like this is critical to decreasing communication barriers, providing a sense of safety for marginalized communities, and truly meeting people’s holistic and intersecting needs. Organizations like ours are community assets that create a more vibrant and healthy community for all.

How do your programs and services help to reduce the disparities experienced by people of color living in our region?

There are troubling racial and ethnic disparities in access to healthcare. In our region, Latine have an uninsurance rate three and a half times the average and they are more than twice as likely to not see a doctor because of cost. Language and cultural barriers also affect access to HIV prevention and care with new HIV diagnoses in the King County Latine population disproportionately affecting people born outside of the US. Health inequities are also significant among the LGBTQ+ community. Men who have sex with men accounted for 68 percent of new HIV cases in King County in 2020 and the risk of acquiring HIV is 25 times higher among men who have sex with men than the general population.

Similar disparities exist in legal systems with LGBTQ+ migrants particularly vulnerable to discrimination and violence. We know from our own experience what it is like to navigate foreign health, legal, or social systems with barriers such as language, sexuality, race, gender, and socio-economic and educational attainment. Many of our clients are immigrants with dreams and visions of a stable and safe future. Our wraparound services in housing, immigration law, outreach and navigation services, and support groups help them attain safety during the most critical period in their lives, reducing disparities and contributing to a region where everyone has an opportunity to live in the fullness of community.

Tell us an example of how a City-funded program or service impacted the life of one of your community members?

One of the things we enjoy most is the opportunity to gather our community in open spaces. In past years, Arts in the Park funding has allowed us to host cultural, art, community, and healing gatherings focused on our connection to each other. From hosting a traditional ‘carne asada’ with music and sunshine to hosting Entre Hermanos’ 9^th Annual Pride Picnic or a movie screening in the park; we are grateful for the opportunities to be in community unburdened and in celebration during these events.

And while we gather community, we take the opportunity to share our stories of resilience and organizational opportunities. Arts in the Park-funded Entre Hermanos events have served as an introduction to Entre Hermanos for many newcomers to the area. One such story is from a person named Amerik. Amerik attended one of our events and soon after began volunteering with Entre Hermanos. Their passion for culture, trans lives, and community, saw them go from a client/volunteer to a staff member in 2022.

As Amerik continues to grow as a social services professional, helping others navigate systems, they carry forward the legacy of Entre Hermanos, and continue building safety and stability in their own life. It is a beautiful journey to witness and that is the impact we want to achieve.

*Entre Hermanos employees: Amerike, Macarena, Rafael and Emilio during a community outreach event.*

What motivates your staff or keeps you going?

We are proud of our own collective intersectionality experience, which makes us look for ways to serve those who are excluded in other contexts, and love working within our culture to serve those who have been pushed aside due to language, sexuality, race, or gender. We know how important a sense of safety is to our clients because we’ve faced the same challenges, and every day we strive to cultivate a transformative and gracious space where people can live their most authentic and empowering identities. We are proud of each of our wins and proud to help provide those in our communities with support to enable them to better navigate complex healthcare, housing, and immigration systems on their own terms.

Entre Hermanos 33 Years Into the Future

Posted on September 10, 2024 by Matthew Bromley

An article from WA Department of Health Newsletter

DOH 150-158 February 2024
HCS Newsletter

We want the community to learn about the wonderful work Entre Hermanos does for the LGBTQ+ Latino Community in Washington State. So we asked Entre Hermanos Executive Director, Edgar Longoria, to help us achieve this by answering a series of questions to clearly define the importance of this organizations role in providing community services.
Who is Entre Hermanos and for how long has it served the community?
We are an organization with roots in the community. Everything we do is community-based and we do it in ways that are culturally affirming, safe, and supportive. We were created to respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis in Washington State in the early 1990’s. Our founders wanted to support members of the LGBTQ+ Latino community regardless of their immigration status.

For over 33 years we have honored that legacy by promoting health and well-being for the Latinx LGBTQ+ community. The work we do is rooted in love, care, and support.

Who are your clients?
We serve sexually diverse Latinx people, including transgender immigrants. Most of our clients reside or work in King County and surrounding areas, but we also see clients from Central or Eastern Washington. Clients that come from afar are drawn by a need for our integrated services in health, housing, and immigration.

What services does Entre Hermanos provide?
We provide testing services for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. We also provide HIV medical case management and help remove barriers to transportation and other essential needs. We offer preventive services such as PrEP navigation and condom distribution. We do light-touch outreach and education
via radio and social media. We have
wrap-around services in housing and immigration law. Every year we reach over 7,000 people in our community. Our services are free of charge in Spanish and indigenous languages from Central America. Our staff speak the same language as our clients. This helps decrease communication barriers and provides a sense of safety to clients.
Our cultural experience helps us understand clients’ holistic and intersecting needs.

*Joel Aguirre interviews a community member on an episode of an Entre Hermanos podcast*

What makes you proud of the work
Entre Hermanos does?
I am proud of our collective intersectionality experience. It makes us look for ways to serve those who are excluded in other contexts. We know from our own experience what it is like to be pushed aside due to our languages, sexualities, races, and genders.
Our collective intersectionality experience helps us understand client’s holistic and intersecting needs.
And we can meet these needs through case management related to medical care, housing assistance, support groups, and more.
I am also proud of the way we cultivate a transformative and gracious space where people can live their most authentic and empowering selves.

Is there anything else you would like to share?
Yes. Very soon Entre Hermanos will expand our reach to the community. We are excited to announce that are opening an office in rural Yakima. This was possible thanks to a Congressional Direct Spending project from Senator Patty Murray. We hope to be ready to roll this out by next year. This office will help us expand our holistic programs on HIV care and prevention, legal representation, prevention education outreach via radio, and more. Rural areas in Eastern Washington are home to many Hispanic/Latinx individuals.Members of the LGBTQ+ community in those areas have little access to culturally and linguistically sensitive services that are LGBTQ+ affirming.Our presence hopes to change that. We want to continue marching into the future, on the road to justice, striving for progress, and expanding our services to sexually diverse Latinx individuals in Washington.

We are blessed with a supportive community, talented and committed staff, and the support of health champions, like you. Thank you for taking the time to learn about Entre Hermanos. We look forward to future opportunities to advance the health and wellbeing of all LGBTQ+ people in Washington State.
Thank you for your support!

Contributor: Edgar Longoria
Executive Director, Entre Hermanos

Entre Hermanos Brings Trust Into LGBTQ+ Care

Posted on May 30, 2024May 30, 2024 by Matthew Bromley

Leer en español.

May 24, 2024 | By Samantha Malott

Originally published in: https://www.multicare.org/vitals/entre-hermanos-brings-trust-into-lgbtq-care/

At a glance

Entre Hermanos provides culturally based care and support to the Latino LGBTQ+ community
Low-barrier and confidential HIV prevention and outreach efforts are expanding into Yakima community
Success is built by reducing language and cultural barriers and fostering a feeling of community

Nearly 40 years ago, a group of Seattle friends came together to create a support network for those feeling the impact of the HIV epidemic.

Fast-forward to today: They’re known as Entre Hermanos, and their mission — to promote the health of the Latino lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) community — has spread not just city- or statewide, but globally.

The key to Entre Hermanos’ success is a culturally based approach to disease prevention, education, support services, advocacy and community building.

“Most of our Latino community are immigrants. It’s well known that if you change your environment or where you live, there’s a shock,” explains Martha Zuniga, Entre Hermanos deputy director. “We try to keep the cultural part within our care and services, create a sense of family and a place where you can feel safe and express yourself.”

Part of that mission means understanding clients need more than just health care support. People’s priorities are food, housing and keeping their family together — then they start thinking about themselves and health care, Zuniga says.

“When people see themselves reflected in the culture of our space, it builds a sense of trust and comfort. They know when speaking to someone on our team that they share a cultural understanding or very similar life experiences.”

Entre Hermanos provides support across all those key areas, including HIV prevention and education (how and where to receive medication, medical follow-up and testing), connection to food, housing and transportation services, and immigration support through an in-house legal team.

Through these wraparound services, Entre Hermanos reaches more than 7,000 people annually. This includes 1,000 who receive direct intervention through sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) navigation and HIV medical case management, and 6,000 who receive free condoms through outreach efforts, says Edgar Longoria, Entre Hermanos executive director.

Medical case managers currently support 200 individuals, and the legal team has more than 90 active cases.

Growing the reach of Entre Hermanos

Recognizing these needs expand far beyond King County, Entre Hermanos is expanding to other areas of the state, including the Yakima community.

“Reaching Yakima has been a dream of ours for a long time,” Zuniga says. “We have people coming and driving from Yakima, the Tri-Cities, Spokane and Wenatchee to get services here because on that side of the state, there’s nothing similar for them.”

As of the 2022 census, Hispanic- or Latino-identifying people accounted for almost 53 percent of the Yakima County population, with the vast majority listing Spanish as their first language.

Many may also speak a language other than English or Spanish, as they’ve come from Cuba, Nicaragua, Chile or Colombia, Zuniga adds.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, critical information was available in English and Spanish, but so many people were missed, she says. With the support of the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), Entre Hermanos produced informative videos in numerous languages to ensure everyone had access.

Finding support and services in your language is important because things can easily get lost in translation, explains Eduardo Esparza, a Yakima-based nonmedical case manager with Entre Hermanos.

“I have clients who will call me because the pharmacy tells them they can’t fill their medication. What they think is, ‘They don’t want to give me my medication,’ instead of understanding their coverage is expired,” Esparza says. “So that’s when I make some calls to let their medical case manager know what the situation may be so we can address it to solve the problem.”

Yakima has some resources, but Spanish language may not be an option, he explains. And if people do find providers who speak Spanish, the way services are provided may not reflect their culture, Zuniga adds. Trust may be missing as a result.

Culture is the basis for trust

“When people see themselves reflected in the culture of our space, it builds a sense of trust and comfort,” explains Longoria. “They know when speaking to someone on our team that they share a cultural understanding or very similar life experiences.”

Working with case managers who carry that cultural connection also helps build confidence and understanding of treatment, explains Alejandra Grillo-Roa, Entre Hermanos prevention and care program manager.

“We’ll never ask immigration status or charge for our services. It’s free and confidential and it’s all done with love,” Grillo-Roa says. “They don’t need an interpreter to express how they feel, which, if they’re in crisis, it’s important they don’t have to talk through someone else.”

Entre Hermanos helps clients sign up for all the HIV coverage they’re eligible for with DOH, then schedules their first primary care appointment at a trusted clinic, Grillo-Roa explains. HIV case managers may accompany clients to their first appointment and follow up to ensure they understood everything.

The PrEP navigation program is one of Entre Hermanos’ most utilized — the team connects clients with financial assistance for their medication and gender-affirming care and supports them through name changes and hormone or surgical treatments.

Three people stand at a table with informational materials

“We want to make sure there’s no lapse in what they need,” Grillo-Roa says. “We don’t have a timeline for how long they stay with us. We’ve had clients for 11 years, and some who need more services and work with a nonmedical case manager as well, while others become more independent and just check in with us.”

Regardless of how much support clients need, Esparza sees his most important role as being a safe person to come to.

“I also work part-time at a retail store and sometimes I get to interact with the community, and they’ll tell me or ask me about my work at Entre Hermanos,” he says. “They start opening up and telling me about their orientation and if we have stuff to help.”

Once a month, Esparza refills his supply of condoms to have on hand when people in the community ask for help. They’re expensive in the store, and many people may be reluctant to go to Entre Hermanos in person because it could raise questions about their sexual orientation, he explains.

“In rural areas there’s definitely a lack of visibility,” Longoria adds. “We know why people are hesitant to be out and proud in small communities, but we bring that sense of community and acceptance with our services. That’s something you can’t replace.”

Leading the change

In addition to providing critical support services and connection, Entre Hermanos is a leader in advocacy and building a better future for the next generation.

“Our visibility is really important, but our needs are also very similar to other large communities and organizations,” Longoria says. “More recently we’ve been focused on our coalition efforts.”

Entre Hermanos works closely with various city and state commissions focused on LGBTQ+, Latino and immigrant issues, and has a presence at many rallies, health fairs and community events.

“Thankfully, in Washington we have a lot of support through partners, funders and donors, which makes a big difference,” Longoria adds. “But we also recognize that the work we do here, in large part due to social media and the internet, reaches places we never thought it would.”

People in Central America are resharing Entre Hermanos’ posts and thanking them, he says. Grillo-Roa adds they’ve had new clients come in who heard about their program before moving to the United States.

Whether it’s through traditional channels like the website and social media, or peer support groups, community events or podcasts, it’s important to continue growing awareness, Grillo-Roa says.

It takes time to build that trust, especially in a new community. She hopes people find them and know they’re a safe place, free of judgment.

“Partnering for healing and a healthy future” is MultiCare’s mission, and it inspires us to form connections that help improve the quality of life for our communities. Community organizations all around us are doing amazing work, and we’re inspired and excited to support that work.

Stories from our Community is an ongoing series conceived to dive into some of these organizations*, bring their stories to life and spread the word about how they are making our communities better.

*Some of the organizations profiled in this series are recipients of MultiCare’s Community Partnership Fund, which awards funds to nonprofit organizations working on initiatives, programs and projects that improve our community.

What’s next

Find HIV prevention resources with Entre Hermanos
Support the Entre Hermanos mission yourself
Learn more about the importance of HIV prevention from our experts

About the Author: Samantha Malott

Samantha Malott is an editorial content specialist and brings her love for storytelling to the MultiCare Inland Northwest region to shine a spotlight on the excellent staff, providers, patients and community partners in our community.

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Tag: HIV