In the heart of Abilene, Texas, a region defined by wide-open landscapes, one organization has become a lifeline for people living with HIV. Dignity Health Management Center, a nonprofit serving the “Big Country” for 40 years, offers an integrated, person-centered approach that combines medical care, psychosocial support, access to dental care, food assistance, housing support, and community-building resources.
But behind the scenes, the organization is navigating an increasingly complex healthcare landscape — one marked by rising patient needs, shrinking resources, and dizzying regulatory requirements. To meet that challenge, Dignity has leaned on a deeply integrated relationship with Avita Pharmacy, which works to expand health equity by supporting covered entities with innovative pharmacy services, 340B program expertise, and a growing suite of consulting solutions designed for today’s regulatory and operational landscape.
Together, the two organizations are demonstrating how a strategic partnership can transform patient access, strengthen clinic operations, and sustain care for communities that often stand at the margins of the healthcare system.
Together, Avita and Dignity are demonstrating how a strategic partnership can transform patient access, strengthen clinic operations, and sustain care for communities that often stand at the margins of the healthcare system.
A mission rooted in helping people live their best lives
Dignity’s roots stretch back to 1984, when it was founded as a community response to the HIV/AIDS crisis that devastated families across the region. Over the decades, the organization expanded its services, eventually rebranding in 2023 to better reflect its broader mission: Creating a community to help every individual not only manage HIV as a chronic condition, but also live fully, with dignity and support.
“We wanted a name that captured what we’re trying to do,” says Executive Director Joy Ellinger, who joined in July of 2023 just as the new identity became official. “Our overarching theme is simple: We’re here to help you live your best life.”
This philosophy is woven deeply into the center’s design. In Abilene’s 19-county region, where access to specialty care can be scattered and transportation hurdles are real, Dignity stands out. The organization provides medical services, confidential testing, onsite nursing, oral health care, housing assistance, case management, prevention counseling, nutritional support, and more.
“Most agencies in Texas provide referrals for some services,” Ellinger explains. “We provide them all in one place.”
And demand is rising. When Ellinger arrived, Dignity served about 220 clients. Today, the number sits at 269, including 13 new HIV diagnoses in the past year and 12 in the year prior.
“Unfortunately, the rate of newly infected patients is growing,” she says. “But with the right support, they can suppress viral load and live full, healthy lives.”
We wanted a name that captured what we’re trying to do. Our overarching theme is simple: We’re here to help you live your best life.
Behind the scenes: Ensuring critical 340B compliance
If the waiting room functions as Dignity’s public face, the 340B drug pricing program serves as its operational backbone. Designed to assist safety-net providers in stretching limited federal resources, the program allows organizations like Dignity to obtain discounted medications and reinvest the savings into patient care.
But 340B success comes with a catch: The compliance burden is enormous. “It’s a heavily regulated world,” Ellinger says. “We have no option but to get everything exactly right.”
That’s where Avita entered the story.
Avita is no stranger to HIV care. With more than 60 pharmacies nationwide, most located onsite at community health clinics, the company specializes in helping covered entities maintain compliant, efficient 340B programs while improving access to compassionate, comprehensive, and inclusive healthcare and pharmacy services for patients in the LGBTQ+ community and other marginalized communities, and for those living with or at risk for HIV.
Traditionally, Avita delivered 340B program support as part of its integrated pharmacy services agreement model. Today, the organization continues to offer full program support to its pharmacy partners. However, it has also expanded its service offerings to include a robust new layer of ad hoc 340B consulting services, available to covered entities whether or not they utilize Avita for pharmacy operations. These services include:
- Entity self-audits and program reviews
- Policy and procedure development and updates
- HRSA audit readiness and support
- Staff training and education on 340B compliance
- Mock HRSA audits
- Referral capture
This evolution reflects Avita’s understanding of the increasingly complex regulatory environment that safety-net providers must navigate, as well as the need for flexible solutions tailored to each organization’s workflows, staffing, and data systems.
Avita’s 340B team collaborates with Dignity’s leadership to ensure the organization maintains the strong compliance required in today’s environment. Through ongoing monitoring, consultative guidance, and continuous operational insight, Avita helps Dignity dedicate more time to what matters most: patient care.
“Avita’s team helped me understand the complexity of the 340B program,” Ellinger says. “Not only so we could address compliance issues, but also to help us grow the program to improve patient care and provide more sustainable funding for staffing and services.”
But Dignity’s relationship with Avita goes beyond the typical vendor arrangement, with Avita functioning as an operational extension of the non-profit. “They are my partners,” Ellinger says. “They’re not here to criticize me. They’re here to keep us compliant and help us grow.”
Ellinger is candid about the complexity and regulatory intensity of 340B administration, noting that when she arrived at Dignity almost three years ago, the organization faced audit vulnerabilities. At risk were hundreds of thousands of dollars in 340B profits that would otherwise have been reinvested to support patients. With a lean team of less than 15 staff members, Dignity’s executive director has been directly managing the organization’s 340B program in partnership with Avita’s 340B team.
As a result of the collaboration between Dignity and Avita, the issues that previously jeopardized Dignity’s 340B program have been addressed, and the potential effects on patient care have been mitigated.
Avita’s team helped me understand the complexity of the 340B program. Not only so we could address compliance issues, but also to help us grow the program to improve patient care and provide more sustainable funding for staffing and services.
Customized support for 340B compliance
As part of its 340B consulting services, Avita’s 340B team conducts monthly audits of eligible patient encounters and medication dispensing events. When discrepancies arise, the team works side by side with Ellinger to correct them long before HRSA auditors can. This approach mirrors Avita’s philosophy of functioning as a seamless extension of the covered entity, reducing administrative burden while maximizing compliance and funding.
One early issue involved gaps in Dignity’s electronic medical records. Although both Dignity and a local hospital used the same electronic medical record (EMR) system, their instances weren’t syncing. Avita helped identify the gap and coached Dignity through the process of updating consent forms and connecting systems. Within weeks, missing records started syncing data again, Ellinger recalls.
Avita also flagged missing memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with contracted physicians — essential for demonstrating 340B eligibility. Ellinger collaborated with the hospital to create a consolidated agreement covering all employed physicians, a fix that not only ensured Dignity’s compliance moving forward but also allowed the hospital to credit the clinic for several months of 340B fees.
Avita is my partner. They’re not here to criticize me. They’re here to keep us compliant and help us grow.
Seamless care at the pharmacy counter
Avita’s onsite pharmacy at Dignity Health is more than a neighborhood dispensing location; it is an extension of the care team. Pharmacist-in-Charge Kaitlyn Drennan and the rest of the pharmacy team work closely with Dignity’s clinicians and case managers, offering medication counseling, identifying patient needs, and supporting adherence, all of which are critical components of long-term viral suppression. Their relationships with patients open doors: Patients seek their advice on side effects or symptoms when they can’t reach their provider, bridging a critical access gap in rural HIV care.
This onsite pharmacy model is part of Avita’s broader national footprint, ensuring that patients can pick up medications in the same place they receive care. The approach enhances convenience, promotes retention, and strengthens adherence, all key determinants of patient health outcomes.
Being physically embedded within Dignity’s care environment allows Avita to serve as a daily touchpoint, particularly for patients facing transportation challenges or scheduling difficulties. Small, practical supports, such as rapid access to urgent prescriptions or counseling on medication changes, often prevent disruptions in therapy and help patients feel seen, supported, and understood.
Avita’s onsite pharmacy at Dignity Health is more than a neighborhood dispensing location; it is an extension of the care team.
A model for the future of community-based HIV care
Dignity Health Management Center stands as a model for what comprehensive, compassion-driven HIV care can look like in a rural region. Its mission-driven approach — serving the whole person, not just their diagnosis — has allowed it to build trust, reduce stigma, and foster community among people living with HIV in West Texas.
Avita’s partnership amplifies this mission by strengthening the systems, workflows, and supports that keep patients connected to care. With its shift to offering an additional layer of ad hoc 340B consulting services, Avita is uniquely positioned to meet covered entities exactly where they are, supporting them not only as a pharmacy partner but also as a strategic collaborator in 340B policy and audit expertise, training, and monthly self-audits that shield clinics from risk and expand their capacity.
In a healthcare landscape where safety-net clinics often face tightening resources and expanding responsibilities, the partnership between Dignity and Avita demonstrates what is possible when two mission-aligned organizations combine their strengths. “When you have a contract with Avita, it’s more than a contract,” Ellinger says. “It’s a professional and personal relationship… both working toward the same goals to get the very best for your patient.”
When you have a contract with Avita, it’s more than a contract. It’s a professional and personal relationship… both working toward the same goals to get the very best for your patient.
