COMMENT : Up Queer Street
posted: 07/08/2002
As we report on the front page of Insight, the number of new HIV infections hit an all-time high in 2001. The media continue to highlight the fact that gay men no longer make up the majority of new infections.
Nationally this is true, but it masks a more complex picture. In England as a whole the majority of new infections were acquired through heterosexual sex – three quarters of these associated with contact abroad rather than in this country. As usual the media are slipping into the myth that HIV is somehow more of an issue because it is heterosexuals who are becoming infected.
For the gay community, the number of new infections continues to rise year after year. The numbers of gay men who are HIV positive is the largest number ever. These are issues that as a community we cannot ignore.
In Manchester and the North West we have our own particular issues. Unlike England as a whole the North West continues to see the majority of new infections amongst gay men. (Although the numbers of heterosexual infections and HIV positive immigrants are also increasing.) Research, now a few years old, found that 1 in 20 gay men on the commercial gay scene is HIV positive.
HIV is therefore a very real part of our gay community in the North West. This is reality, it is not going to go away. As a community, and as individuals there is much that we can do. For some people it will mean dealing with being HIV positive – or dealing with your boyfriend or best mate being HIV positive. For organisations like George House Trust it means working to support people who are positive.
Sometimes what we can do is financial. Some of our bar and club owners have led the way on this and the amount of money that Manchester’s gay village raises for its community charities puts London, Birmingham, Glasgow and the rest to shame.
For all of us it means taking the issue of HIV seriously. We have a right to be proud of our achievements so far, but equally we have the responsibility to continue this response.
The figures show that for the country as a whole HIV is “not over”. For the gay community, it has never been possible to imagine that it was.
Tim Pickstone is Deputy Director of George House Trust
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SPOTLIGHT : Secondary Prevention
posted: 07/08/2002
GHT is developing a new secondary HIV prevention campaign for gay men following the successful campaign it launched two years ago, but what is it, and why?
Secondary Prevention is the promotion of the psychological, physical, emotional and sexual health needs of HIV positive individuals.
Most HIV prevention work to date has focused only on the needs of (assumed) negative populations. There is only now a growing recognition that these ‘primary prevention’ campaigns have failed to see HIV positive people as part of the wider community they are seeking to address, and an acknowledgement of the role some of these campaigns have played – unwittingly – in increasing the sense of exclusion of HIV positive people (a point we have been making for many years).
These campaigns have generally – however benignly – only dealt with HIV positive gay men as vectors of infection, placing on them the responsibility for preventing onward transmission. This negligent and often hurtful approach treats HIV as the single defining feature of HIV positive gay men, rather than seeing it as one part of their otherwise complex lives.
Positive gay men continue to have a variety of health needs that need to be specifically addressed to both maintain and sustain their long-term physical and psychological health. There is no disagreement that confident, empowered individuals, acting assertively in their own interest are more likely to care about their future and take measures to secure their own health interests, invariably to the benefit of others, particularly in respect of physical and sexual health.
It is a banality we have often stated that new infections occur when HIV passes from an individual who has it to one who does not. There is a ‘primary prevention’ outcome to a meaningful engagement around the health needs of HIV positive people. Failing to recognize the importance of their needs as the central point of reference (successful secondary prevention work), is at best short sighted and at worst negligent.
The key campaign aims are to promote the health needs of positive gay men within the wider community, to promote and encourage access to the full range of HIV and sexual health services, with particular focus on access to information and treatment support, and to raise awareness among (particularly) wider gay populations that positive people are an integral part of those communities to whom we all have a responsibility.
Consultations and piloting of materials are currently under way with HIV positive gay men using our services. The outcome of these consultations will be a new campaign launched in the spring of this year and aiming to run indefinitely as an ongoing part of our work.
Ashley Fletcher is Assistant Director of Services at George House Trust.
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The Story of Ombome Oto
posted: 07/08/2002
Anne Hibbert has for the past three years worked in development aid in sub-Saharan Africa. Working on a health management project she spent the time in Ohangwena in the north of Namibia, one of the poorest regions of this southern African country.
The initial work involved vast amounts of data collection and as the infor-mation base of statistics increased, so did the realisation of the economic and social effects of HIV on an already poverty stricken people.
For many years during the war for independence this highly populated area was the centre of guerrilla activities, evidenced by the number of buildings still bearing the scars of battle.
The Kwanyama peoples of the Oshandi settlement area survive only on periodic subsistence agriculture, living in traditional homesteads which lack access to safe water and sanitation.
Electricity supply is variable, and telephone communication weak. Road systems are poor and travel between settlements and townships, schools and health facilities difficult.
Against this background of economic suffering is the major health problem of HIV. The estimate is that 23% of the adult population are HIV positive and HIV is now the major cause of death in adults in the age group 20-49. There are an increasing number of orphans, many of whom cannot be cared for by families or social services. There are no drug treatments and hospitals and clinics are over-whelmed by the demand for services for patient care and treatment.
The Government and aid agencies are working to provide a programme of prevention and care, but the lack of resources often fails to reach the poorest areas.
The grass roots response from the Oshandi community resulted in the setting up of "Ombome Oto" (literally "fighting the snake"). This volunteer care programme, managed entirely by the community, provides advice on preventative strategies, home care, counselling, humanitarian and spiritual help for people with HIV and their families.
Technological support has been from aid workers who have helped in developing a constitution and in getting the project registered as a charitable trust. Financial support from a faith based organisation in the UK is ongoing.
The Oshandi community spirit is inspirational in the support of its' people and in the promotion of respect for human rights for all.
Ann Hibbert
Ann is committed to returning to Namibia, to continue the work with other communities. Meanwhile she is continuing with fundraising activities and is working as a volunteer with GHT, hoping to gain a wider understanding of HIV issues.
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Working for P.I.N. Money
posted: 07/08/2002
Have you noticed the beaded HIV pin now being worn by many people? They were the very elite of pins on World HIV Day when they were worn by TV and Film celebrities.
The story behind these pins is interesting but poignant. Hand-made from tiny red and white beads, they originate in a township in rural Zululand. They are carefully crafted by grannies who care for their grandchildren orphaned by HIV. The money collected from their sale is distributed in the form of food, and other essentials.
In Africa over 12 million children have lost their parents to HIV, the majority of these in South Africa. The trauma the children suffer can leave social and psychological scars and their economic survival is a community problem which cannot be ignored. The best option is to try and keep the children with their grandparents who likewise are grieving for their adult children. This provides a secure and familiar environment and family continuity for the older generation.
When the P.I.N. Project started in 1999, concern and commitment were high, but resources were nil. It was decided to use the traditional craft skills of the older generation to produce saleable articles, thus generating an income as well as a profit for the welfare fund.
The beaded HIV pin was the chosen item also becoming the logo and title of the project. Based upon the Zulu 'Love letter', which is given as a sign of affection, the pin has many other symbolisms. In the language of beads, white symbolises the purest form of love; the interwoven red ribbon is the international symbol of support for people living with HIV and the safety pin symbolises the holding together of a torn and damaged family.
After 2 years the Project has grown from the original 6 grannies to over 60 women who have produced over 8,000 pins. It is now formally constituted, recognised as a charity and has an employee paid for by the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. Many hundreds of children are now receiving help..
I was the aid worker, who was there at the birth of the project, and am now a volunteer at George House Trust. In 2000 I appeared at GHT's door asking for information on HIV. Now George House Trust is one of the main P.I.N. supporters acting as a sale-outlet for the pins and including them in its 2001 Christmas gift catalogue. This fits nicely with its theme approach of 'global crisis; global response.'
As a result of my travels for the project, talks and media interviews a support network has now been established with pins being sold from HIV Support Centres, Colleges, Schools, Churches, Oxfam, VSO, WDM groups and by many individuals.
Alice Searle
Alice has now returned to South Africa to visit the grannies and children and help extend the project to other townships. She will be back here in June to restock our 'pin bank' and again join the GHT volunteers.
If you have any comments about this, or other Insight articles, please e-mail <a href="mailto:insight@ght.org.uk">insight@ght.org.uk</a>
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Testing Positive
posted: 07/08/2002
There is never a ‘right time’ to receive a positive result and for many people it may feel like the world has been turned upside down by the news of a positive diagnosis. Despite how it may feel at the time, there is a way through the maze of emotions a positive test result brings.
It would be an impossible task to compile a definitive list of the range of emotions experienced by someone who has just been told that they are HIV positive. Shock, anger, disbelief, shame and fear are some of the words used recently by people who have come to see us at George House Trust.
But these are just some of the emotions such news arouses.
Assumptions and life plans made before diagnosis are often thrown into disarray. Some people feel pressure to change those plans and make decisions before feeling ready to do so. Consequently, coming to terms with a positive diagnosis can often mean having to resist well-meaning pressure to ‘get things sorted’.
There is no right or wrong way to behave or react following a positive diagnosis but there should be no pressure on you to believe that your feelings are not valid or that your reaction to your diagnosis is wrong or unusual. Your right is to express your feelings without fear of criticism or judgement.
There is no blueprint for how long it may take for your world to start looking something like it was before but you have a right to support for as long as you may need it. There is no handbook which will tell you ‘what to do next’, but you are entitled to time with someone who will look at the alternatives with you and give you the space to decide what’s best for you.
But what of some of the issues which, in your own time, you may want to find an answer to, such as: Who do I tell? How do I tell them? What should I expect next? What about sex? To say that there is an easy answer to any of these questions would be simplistic in the extreme and to assume that each person asks the self-same questions would be to deny the enormously diverse way in which a positive diagnosis makes its impact.
Quite simply put, the most important questions are those that you, as a newly diagnosed person, feel you need an answer to.
All of us look for our own ways of coping with stressful and difficult experiences. If we’re very lucky indeed, there’s an endless source of friends and family members who will listen without judgement and allow us to find our own way to answer what may initially seem like insurmountable problems. Even if such support does exist for us it may not always be the kind of support we want or need.
It takes time to adjust to the implications of a HIV positive diagnosis and there will be things to think about which, in turn, give rise to questions to which you might think there is no obvious answer.
At George House Trust our belief is that you are entitled to the kind of support that is right for you, at the time you feel you need it and for as long as you want it.
If you are newly diagnosed and want to talk things over, simply give us a call and make an appointment to see a Service Manager.
Colin Armstead is a Services Manager at George House Trust.
If you have any comments about this, or other Insight articles, please e-mail <a href="mailto:insight@ght.org.uk">insight@ght.org.uk</a>
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