Acknowledgement

This activity is provided by Talem Health and RME Collaborative.

In collaboration with the Southeast AIDS Education & Training Center.

This activity is supported by an independent educational grant from Gilead Sciences, Inc.

Credit Available

• Physicians — maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
• Nurses — 1.5 Contact Hours (1.25 contact hour of pharmacotherapy credit)
• Pharmacists — 1.5 Contact Hours (0.15 CEU)

All other healthcare professionals completing this course will be issued a statement of participation.

Target Audience

This activity is designed specifically for primary care clinicians including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, pharmacists, and other members of the healthcare team who care for patients from rural and underserved communities. 

Program Overview

The Southeast region of the United States continues to experience a disproportionate HIV burden, particularly in rural and underserved communities. Patients who reside in these areas face limited healthcare infrastructure, workforce shortages, transportation challenges, and persistent stigma, all of which impede timely diagnosis, treatment initiation, and sustained engagement in care. Fortunately, primary care clinicians are uniquely positioned to address the needs of these disproportionately affected populations, highlighting the importance of expanded intervention. This on-demand activity—part of a two-part CME/CE series, Closing Gaps in HIV Treatment for Rural and Underserved Communities of the Southeast United States—uses a case-based format to illustrate best practices for initiating antiretroviral therapy that is tailored to individual patient needs, including rapid-start strategies. Expert faculty will also review the latest clinical data and demonstrate how to apply these findings to real-world scenarios to support ongoing monitoring and follow-up, manage treatment-related side effects, and enhance adherence and retention in care.

This activity is a recording from a two-part webinar series that took place in August 2026.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be better able to: 

• Incorporate current evidence-based HIV treatment guidelines to individualize long-term treatment selection, monitoring, and follow-up based on patient-specific clinical and social factors
• Integrate patient-specific clinical and social factors including comorbidities, adherence considerations, and social determinants of health, when individualizing HIV treatment and follow-up plans 
• Identify key structural and social barriers, including stigma, transportation challenges, and limited healthcare resources, that affect engagement in HIV care for people living in rural and underserved communities
• Utilize interprofessional strategies that support patient engagement, treatment adherence, and equitable access to HIV care for people living in rural and underserved communities

Faculty

Paul E. Sax, MD
Clinical Director, Division of Infectious Diseases
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA


Cody A. Chastain, MD, MEHP
Associate Professor of Medicine  
Vanderbilt Health 
Nashville, TN

Joint Accreditation Statement

In support of improving patient care, Talem Health is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Credit Designation Statement

Physician Continuing Medical Education
Talem Health designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Continuing Nursing Education
The maximum number of hours awarded for this Continuing Nursing Education activity is 1.5 contact hours. Designated for 1.25 contact hour of pharmacotherapy credit for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses.

Continuing Pharmacy Education
Talem Health designates this continuing education activity for 1.5 contact hours (0.15 CEU) of the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education.
(Universal Activity Number – JA4008332-0000-26-061-H01-P)
Type of Activity: Application

Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

Talem Health adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity, including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others, are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (commercial interests). All identified conflicts of interest are thoroughly vetted and mitigated according to Talem Health policy. Talem Health is committed to providing its learners with high quality accredited continuing education activities and related materials that promote improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of an ineligible company.

Faculty

Paul E. Sax, MD, has disclosed the following relevant financial relationships: consultant/advisory board member for Gilead Sciences, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline/ViiV Healthcare, and Merck & Co., Inc.; contracted research support from Gilead Sciences, Inc. and GlaxoSmithKline/ViiV Healthcare.

Cody A. Chastain, MD, MEHP, has no relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

Planners, Managers, and Reviewer

None of the Talem Health staff (planners, managers, or reviewer) for this educational activity have relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies.

Instructions for Participation and Credit

This activity is offered at no cost to participants. To receive CME credit, participants must:

1. Read the CME/CE information, including learning objectives and disclosure statements.
2. Complete the pre-test.
3. View the online activity.
4. Complete the post-test and evaluation form.

A post-test score of 75% or higher is required to obtain credit. Your certificate will be made available for immediate download.

Course Viewing Requirements

Supported Browsers:
Desktop/laptop: Newest and last prior version of Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Microsoft Edge
Mobile devices: Newest and last prior version of Safari and Google Chrome

Supported Phones & Tablets:
All devices

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. The planners of this activity do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications. The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of the planners. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings. 

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications and/or dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.

©RME Collaborative, a division of Talem Health, LLC. All Rights Reserved. These materials may be used for personal use only. Any rebroadcast, distribution, or reuse of this presentation or any part of it in any form for other than personal use without the express written permission of Talem Health, LLC is prohibited.

Media

Internet activity

Fee Information

There is no fee for this educational activity.

Contact Information

For questions about this activity, please contact RME Collaborative (a division of Talem Health) at 800-913-9370 or cme@cmeruralhealth.com.