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HCAI

About Us We see you. 

Being part of the LGBTQ+ community isn’t something we imagine. It’s our lived experience. 

A healthy, happy life is possible when you have a provider that wants the same for you. We want going to see your healthcare provider to feel like being with family, where being yourself is met with respect and acceptance – not ignorance and criticism. Whether it’s a patient here in our safe and stigma-free office or a community across the world, we’re here to provide care that sees you clearly and authentically.

Health Care Advocates International Mission Statement Video

Our Mission

Our mission is to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) by fighting stigma and discrimination and ending homelessness. With an emphasis on the LGBTQ+ and HIV communities, we hope to end HIV as a global health crisis in the most and least developed countries through prevention, programs, education, advocacy, and treatment.

For those who acquire it, we’re fighting for long, healthy lives. For those at risk, we want to prevent it entirely. And for those who reinforce the stigma, we hope to change their hearts.

OUR VISION

2030. That’s the year we see the end of HIV/AIDS as a global health threat. Here is how we get there. 

Ensure Access to Quality Care

We’re partnering with organizations around the world to support the 2014 UNAIDS “90-90-90 Fast Track Strategy” that aims to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 through diagnostic, preventive, and comprehensive treatment services.

Fight the Stigma 

Education on the reality of HIV helps to address barriers to care, including civil, political, economic, cultural, and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). We also aim to end gender-based violence and support victims in getting the support they need. 

Reduce Morbidity

Knowledge is not just power – it’s life. By increasing HIV awareness in vulnerable populations, we can make sure that life-saving preventative and diagnostic treatments are used when they’re needed.

Protect Future Generations

A future without HIV starts today, with all the necessary tools in hand. We’re working to improve access to risk-reduction education, testing, and preventative measures, especially for young people, pregnant mothers, and infants.

Why We’re Here 

Dr. Gary Blick, treating the LGBTQ+ and HIV communities for over 35 years, founded HCAI in 2016 with the same vision he had his entire medical career: that all people should be treated with the same compassion, concern, and empathy, as well as be able to access  comprehensive healthcare. 

As a gay physician and someone who lost a long-term companion to complications with HIV/AIDS, Dr. Blick has a deeply personal understanding of the type of stigma and discrimination his HIV and LGBTQ+ patients experience on a daily basis. Our work as a team directly combats these negative attitudes by providing high quality, accessible, and nonjudgmental care for marginalized, vulnerable, and disenfranchised populations.  

Read the Full Story

CHANGE BY THE NUMBERS

Within every number, a life is changed. 

3,500

During Dr. Blick’s medical career, he has provided care for more than 3,500 people living with HIV.

2030

Our work supports the 2014 UNAIDS “90-90-90 Fast Track Strategy,” with the goal to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030. 

35+

Dr. Blick began his medical career in 1987 during the height of the AIDS epidemic. He has more than 35 years of experience treating the LGBTQ+ community, and he’s not stopping now. 

22

For 22 years prior to founding HCAI, Dr. Blick set his sights on sub-Saharan Africa in 2000. He has made strides towards alleviating the impacts of HIV on vulnerable communities, including the successful treatment of an HIV-positive Zimbabwean couple who gave birth to an HIV-negative child in 2002. 

Advocacy & Programs Advocacy Spotlight 

In addition to medical care, our team works to create healthy, happy experiences for the LGBTQ+ community through prevention, programs, education, and advocacy. Read more about the lives we’ve touched through advocacy work. 

Learn More

OUR TEAM From the staff at the front desk to the ones out in the community, we carry out our mission in everything we do.