Bringing Care Home: DAP Health & North County LGBTQ Center Partner to Expand Lifesaving Services
By Cesar A Reyes
CJ Tobe knows what it feels like to be left out of the conversation. Growing up in rural Ohio, he wasn’t taught about HIV in school. He didn’t see his identity reflected in the healthcare system. And in his early twenties, after receiving an AIDS diagnosis, he was met not with support but with stigma, shame, and isolation.
Now, as Chief Transformation Officer at DAP Health, CJ is using his journey to change the story for others. And thanks to a new partnership between DAP Health and the North County LGBTQ Resource Center in Oceanside, care is getting closer, more compassionate, and more community-rooted than ever.
“Wherever there’s a community need, DAP Health strives to collaborate and find meaningful ways to meet that need,” CJ says.
The partnership, announced earlier this year, is already in motion. Construction on a new clinic and on-site pharmacy is set to begin in January 2026, with doors expected to open by late spring. The goal? To make inclusive, lifesaving sexual health care not just available but accessible and affirming for the LGBTQ+ community in North County San Diego.
Free, Affirming Sexual Health Services Coming Soon
The clinic will offer a robust suite of services—all free—centered around sexual wellness, HIV prevention and care, and STI treatment. Services will include:
- HIV testing and rapid-start care for anyone newly diagnosed
- PrEP and PEP for HIV prevention
- DoxyPEP, an emerging tool to prevent bacterial STIs
- STI testing and treatment
- Birth control and pregnancy testing
What sets this clinic apart isn’t just the services, but where and how they’ll be delivered. The clinic will be located directly on the North County LGBTQ Resource Center campus, a place that already serves as a haven for the community.
“We want people to feel safe, respected, and fully supported when accessing care,” CJ explains. “Healthcare shouldn’t come with judgment or barriers. It should come with trust.”
Listening First, Then Building Together
The partnership didn’t happen overnight; it started with listening. DAP Health and the North County LGBTQ Center spent time reviewing local health data, hearing from residents, and identifying the biggest gaps.
“After listening to the community, we felt compelled to share DAP Health’s free clinic model,” says CJ. “It wasn’t about replicating what we do somewhere else—it was about building something with the community that reflects their needs.”
And DAP Health has experience doing just that. In recent years, the organization has opened four free sexual wellness clinics across the Coachella Valley, launched a state-licensed harm reduction program, and brought virtual HIV prevention services to over 10,000 people statewide through a partnership with Mistr.
This kind of innovation is powered by a clear purpose: bringing healthcare to people where they are geographically, emotionally, and culturally.
Rooted in Lived Experience
CJ’s passion for this work is deeply personal. He first entered the HIV field in 2013 as a frontline case manager, later leading community health efforts through the COVID-19 pandemic and mpox outbreak. Along the way, he’s helped launch everything from harm reduction vending machines to rapid HIV start programs that get newly diagnosed individuals on medication within three days.
But more than any job title, it’s his lived experience that drives him.
“I lived through my storm,” he says. “Now I want to see others through theirs.”
It’s why equity and representation are baked into how DAP Health operates. From hiring team members who reflect the communities they serve to designing services around real-world barriers like transportation and stigma, the organization leads with empathy.
“We’re not just building clinics. We’re building trust,” CJ says.
Fighting Stigma With Compassion
While science has come a long way in transforming HIV into a manageable condition, stigma remains one of the biggest barriers to care. For many, fear of judgment still keeps them from getting tested, starting treatment, or talking openly about their health.
That’s why partnerships like this one matter so much.
“We can’t end the HIV epidemic if people are still afraid to walk into a clinic,” CJ says. “When services are offered in a space like the North County LGBTQ Center—a place already rooted in community—it breaks down those walls.”
And when people see themselves reflected in their providers and peer educators? The impact goes even deeper.
“Representation builds trust. And trust builds better health outcomes.”
Looking Ahead with Hope and Urgency
As the HIV landscape continues to evolve—with long-acting injectable treatments, telehealth platforms, and rising rates among young people—CJ says one thing remains constant: the need to center community voices.
“This work isn’t about telling people what they need. It’s about listening to what they already know,” he says.
He encourages the next generation of HIV advocates to carry that torch by staying curious, listening deeply, and caring for themselves along the way.
“This fight has always been a marathon, not a sprint,” CJ says. “And if we want to sustain it, we have to lead with empathy and hope.”
In a time when so many systems feel overwhelming and impersonal, the DAP Health and North County LGBTQ Center partnership is a reminder of what’s possible when care is personal, human, and built in partnership with community.
Because everyone deserves the chance to feel seen. To feel safe. To feel whole.
“The word that guides my work?” CJ reflects. The WORD is Tranquil. “I try to be the calm in the storm—because I know what it’s like to be in that storm. And I want others to know: they’re not alone.”