Born HIV Free is a campaign by The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Raden Haamphunga

If you missed HBO’s “The Lazarus Effect” on channel 4 on Monday you can catch up on 4oD for the next 28 days.

This 30 minute film directed by Lance Bangs, chronicles the lives of four HIV-positive people living in Zambia over a 3 month period; Connie, Paul, Constance and Bwalya.

You will see how life-saving pills (ARVs) that cost around 40 cents a day transformed their lives as they share their stories. You will also meet Raden a four year-old boy who is less fortunate. This film brings home the devastation that Aids can, and still has on the people of Africa.

HIV/Aids has killed more than 20 million people in Africa. Today, thanks to reduced costs and increased access, more than 3 million people in Africa are now receiving treatment. However 3,800 people die every day in sub-Saharan Africa from the decease “The Lazarus Effect” film shows that this needn’t be the case.

Click here to watch “The Lazarus Effect”

www.joinred.com

Inhumane laws that criminalise homosexuality are preventing HIV help and care reaching  90 per cent of gay men living in the Asia-Pacific region, a UN backed report says.

The report published by the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) and the Asian Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM), also found that HIV infection rates amung – men who have sex with men – had reached alarming levels and that 19 of 48 countries in the region criminalise male-to-male sex.

Punishments for MSM in these countries range from the death penalty in Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan to whipping in Malaysia and parts of Indonesia; violence and human rights violations are commonplace.

In the countries where homosexuality is not prohibited other repressive laws often violate the rights of MSM and transgender people and stand in the way of HIV prevention, advocacy and outreach, the report added.

“The effectiveness of the HIV response will depend not just on the sustained scale up of HIV prevention, treatment and care, but on whether the legal and social environment support or hinder programmes for those who are most vulnerabl,” said Mandeep Dhaliwal of the UNDP.

The report acknowledged that several countries including India, Nepal, South Korea and the Philippines have brought in new laws and policies to help these communities deal with the public health issues they face.

Abuses such as the confiscation of condoms as evidence of illegality in Thailand and India and the censorship of HIV education material in China and Singapore, were also noted by the report.

“A strategy of comprehensive, rights based HIV prevention requires bold and effective legal and policy measures to reach out to vulnerable communities and individuals at risk,” stated the Honourable Michael Kirby of Australia.

The Honorable Ajit Prakash Shah from India said: “If society can display inclusiveness and understanding, MSM and transgender persons can be assured of a life of dignity and non-discrimination. They cannot be excluded or ostracized merely because some of us perceive them as ‘deviants’ or ‘different.”

UNAIDS estimates that South and East Asia has 4.7 million people living with HIV.

HIV-positive people will get the same protection as other disabled victims of hate crime in revised guidance from the Crown Prosecution Service, it was confirmed today.

Until recently disability hate crime guidance excluded people living with HIV, and the definition of disability in the legislation of the ‘Criminal Justice Act 2003’ was also unclear.

“The publication of this revised guidance brings to an end the legal disadvantage faced by people living with HIV who are victims of hate crime’ said Deborah Jack of the National Aids Trust.

‘The CPS has sent out a clear message that HIV-related hate crime will not be tolerated,” She added.

The revision means that if a person is a victim of a crime because of their HIV status, this can now be considered an aggravating factor by the courts, leading to a longer sentences.

Nadine Tilbury, Senior Legal Advisor for the CPS, said: “Crimes against people living with HIV which are motivated by hostility towards their status have no place in our society and we will prosecute those responsible robustly.”

This outcome comes after a two-year campaign by lead by NAT and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Nadine Tilbury added “The assistance of the NAT in providing data and expertise during our review of our legal guidelines on prosecuting cases of disability hate crime was invaluable.’

The role a GP should play in the care of people living with HIV has been a running debate for years.

As a community we remain divided on the issue. Positive people living outside London are more likely to take up GP services, whereas those in London are less trusting of the GP environment.

The debate has raised many questions.

Are GP’s equipped to deal with patients with a complex medical condition like HIV?

Will a GP practice disclose my HIV status to a third party?

Will the new NHS Summary Care Record disclose my HIV status?

Because of the stigma and discrimination associated with living with HIV, many of us have become protective of the anonymity that a specialist HIV clinic offers.

However, we need to face facts. Despite the lib-con coalition promising to protect NHS budgets, HIV clinics are expensive and managers are asking clinics to make cuts of up to 10 per cent.

Our HIV consultant is no longer a one-stop-pharmacy for anything from anti-depressants to anti-inflammatory, and we will most likely be seeing a lot less of them.

But we should never loose sight of the fact that the drugs we take can be dangerous and can never be managed by our GP. A statement, I am sure they would agree with.

On the whole, my own experience of a GP practice has been good; I like the convenience and proximity of my surgery and it saves me travelling five miles across town.

Like most things in life though, nothing is perfect. I build up a good relationship with a Doctor, only to find a year or so down the line they have moved on.  And many new GP’s are not always up to speed on drugs that can react badly when taken HIV meds. This can be very frustrating.

But, I have to weigh up the ‘pros and cons.’ I had been suffering for many years with chronic depression, tiredness and endless sleepless nights and more recently dizzy spells, symptoms often associated with combination therapy.

When I reached breaking point, my GP sent me for some routine blood tests (ones not included in my regular HIV bloods) and it turned out I had an under-active thyroid. The TSH levels were off the scale, over 50. Basically, my thyroid had stopped working and had probably been that way for years.

So I have to wonder: what position would I be in now if I did not have a GP?  HIV consultants are specialist and do not always pick up on things that GP’s see on a daily basis.

There are some aspects around confidentiality that I am less happy about at my GP practice, even for someone like me that will disclose.

When I am in the surgery making an appointment, I always wonder if a big HIV+ sign is visible to the receptionist? You see for me, this is one step too far, as I want to decide who I disclose to, a point I will raise with my Doctor next time I go in.

However, I feel much more confident that my Doctor would not disclose my status to a third party without my written consent. Not that I am thinking of taking out a mortgage or getting life insurance anytime soon. So If that’s an issue for you, then ask your GP to clarify their working policy on the issue of disclosure.

For about half of us that are using GP’s the pressing issue is: the changes the NHS are making to the way they store our records. (These changes do not do not affect Scotland or Wales.)

The NHS are introducing an electronic database: summary care records (SCRs) that will contain information about allergies and any medication you are taking and will be available to NHS staff. For instance, if you were taken into an A&E department the doctor treating you would be able to access your SCR.

The programme was rolled out at the start of the year and many of you will have had letters. You have 12 weeks to opt-out of the scheme or go into your GP and discuss the information that you are happy to go on the SCR. After that if a record has been created and providing it has not been accessed you can still opt- out.

I have a nasty reaction to penicillin so the chances are I will allow a SCR to be created, but I will ask for the HIV stuff to be left out. Again, I want to be in control of any disclosure of my HIV status.

The bottom line is: a lot is changing in the way in which we receive our HIV care, but I really do champion anyone that is kicking up a stink.

Until there is a fundamental shift in the public perception of people-living-with-HIV and stigma and discrimination is stamped out, the chances are tens-of-thousands will still cling to the anonymity of their HIV clinics.

If you want to find out more about SCRs or how to opt-out go to www.nhscarerecords.nhs.uk

Ten ways to make the most of your GP by NAM

John Williams

Sahir House are celebrating a momentous milestone in 2010. For 25-years Merseyside’s No1 HIV charity have been at the forefront of supporting people affected by HIV and their families.

To mark this occasion, staff and  volunteers have launched a £25k campaign, to raise much-needed funds and help protect future services.

Tommy McIlravey manager of Sahir House said: “This important landmark in our history reflects our past achievements and successes. Whilst providing a starting point for the future, as we shape our services to meet the needs of people living with and affected by HIV in the years to come. We want to make this a memorable year.”

With a packed calendar of events, from cake sales to car boots and running the London marathon. One of the highlights will undoubtedly be, the ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ fundraising dinner, hosted at Liverpool’s award winning restaurant, 60 Hope Street, with champagne reception, three-course meal, live entertainment from Barbieshop and fantastic raffle prizes. 22 June, tickets £50.

For more info call 0151 708 9080 or email info@sahir.uk.com – www.sahir.uk.com

For nearly two decades GMFA have run innovative courses and public health initiatives that have benefited thousands of gay men.

Whether you needed to gain some self-confidence, take control of your sex life or to learn how to protect yourself, GMFA have been there to help.

The Building Your Confidence course will run in 12 cities across the UK this Summer. The one day course, will equip you with practical skills to help build your confidence, help you to talk to the men you like, and put you back in the driving seat when it comes to your sex life.

Matthew Hodson, of the GMFA, says: “Confidence can have a huge impact on our lives. Perhaps where it can have the greatest impact is on the sex we have. Research has shown that men with higher self-confidence are more likely to stick to safer sex.”

12 June: Bradford – London – Leicester

19 June: Bristol – Liverpool – Manchester – Plymouth – Sheffield.

26 June: Birmingham – Brighton – Newcastle – Southampton.

GMFA will run the courses with trainers from local gay charities and healthcare services including: Armistead Project, The Eddystone Trust, The Lesbian and Gay Foundation, MESMAC North East and Yorkshire, the Sheffield Centre for HIV & Sexual Health, Southampton Gay Community health service, Trade Sexual Health and THT.

GMFA courses and workshops are free, but places are limited and need to be booked in advance. To book a place call: 020 7738 3712. www.gmfa.org.uk/national Funded by CHAPS.

The door of a cell at Lusaka Prison. With only small holes for ventilation and light, tuberculosis spreads rapidly. © 2010 João Silva

28 April 2010

Zambian prisons face a HIV epidemic with 27 per cent of the prison population testing HIV positive, a joint report by human rights groups has revealed.

The report says, that prisoners are in danger of torture and rape. Suffer from malnutrition, inadequate medical care and live overcrowded conditions that puts them at risk from TB and drug resistant HIV strains.

Godfrey Malembeka, a former prisoner and prison rights activist who is executive director of PRISCCA said “people are dying.’ Human beings cannot live the way the prisoners are living – it is intolerable.”

Sex has become a commodity that can be bartered for food and other provisions. However, the criminalisation of homosexuality remains the biggest barrier to condom distribution in the prisons and makes HIV prevention impossible.

Dr Simooya,  of ‘In But Free’ who undertook research in Zambian prisons in 1998 told the BBC in a related story “It’s better to be practical and ask how we can prevent the transmission of HIV. We must consider putting condoms in prison.”

The Zambia Prisons Service employs only 14 healthcare workers that look after 15,300 inmates. The last UNAIDS estimated that 1.1 million people are living with HIV the country.

To see the full report – Unjust and Unhealthy: HIV, TB, and Abuse in Zambian Prisons -  go to the Health  Watch Website www.hrw.org/node/8983

If you would like to find out more ,the BBC’s Jo Fidgen explores the problem of HIV in Zambian prisons in a podcast at www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/afpersp

28 April 2010

China has revoked a 20 year old rule that bans people living wit HIV/Aids from visiting the country.

The move by the communist superpower will be welcomed by organisations campaigning to stamp out stigma and end discriminatory policies that target people living with HIV.

In a statement UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon commended President Hu Jintao for China’s decision to remove the travel restrictions.

He also said, “Punitive politics and practices only hamper the global Aids response. I urge all other countries with such restrictions to remove them as a matter of priority and urgency.”

A THT spokeswoman said: “Entry bans do nothing to safeguard public health. Their only real impact is to increase stigma and prevent ordinary people with HIV from getting on with their lives.”

It remains unclear if people living with HIV will still have to declare their status on visa applications to the country.

UNAIDS estimates China has 700,000 people living with HIV. A recent report highlighted the country’s complex epidemic which affects some regions more than others along with high levels of stigma.

China temporarily lifted the ban during 1990 Beijing Asian Games and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The decision to overturn the ban comes just before the opening of World Expo in Shanghai and follows a similar move by the United States in February.