More Hepatitis C and HIV

posted: 22/06/2010

Hepatitis C in the UK: 2009 report is the latest update on the hep C virus from the Health Protection Agency. Figures from this yearly report show that laboratory reporting of newly diagnosed hepatitis C infections in England increased in 2008 by 6% compared to 2007, with 8,196 new cases reported in 2008.

Hepatitis C is rising among among people living with HIV, particularly gay men. Among gay men living with HIV hep C is sexually transmitted. Hep C has serious health impacts, shortens life expectancy and is harder to treat for people with HIV. Hep C treatment takes at least 6 months and has unpleasant side effects, and the success rate is much better when it is treated at an early stage. The largest number of people with and at risk of hep C howeer are injecting drug users.

Hepatitis C in the UK 2009 report and slide set
More news and information on Hepatits C and gay men living with HIV

1 in 73 Injecting Drug Users have HIV
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has also published 'Shooting up: infections among injecting drug users in the United Kingdom 2008. An update: 2009’.

Key findings of the update include: transmission of HIV and hepatitis C infection through injecting drug use remains higher than in the late 1990s - overall, around two-fifths of injecting drug users are now infected with hepatitis C, and about one in 73 with HIV.
 
 

Blackburn Positive Picture Project

posted: 17/06/2010

It does not matter if you are doing really well, or going through a bad time. We all have times when we find it difficult to express our thoughts and feelings in words.

In Blackburn, Thrivine is offering Art Therapy on summer Saturday afternoons.  Art Therapy offers you a way to express and communicate your thoughts and feelings in paints, clay, or other materials.

You do not need to be artistic, or know about art, to benefit.

It is fun and very enjoyable.

Thrivine's Art Therapy - the Positive Picture Project - will be facilitated by qualified people, in a safe space.

If you are infected, or affected by HIV, this could benefit you.

You can choose to come to one or more sessions, or all of the sessions.

Public transport expenses can be reimbursed, should you require.

Positive Picture Project
Saturdays, 2pm to 5pm on these dates

• 17th   July
• 24th   July
• 31st   July
• 7th   August
• 14th   August 
• 21st   August 
• 28th   August 

Where Thrivine will tell you where Positive Picture Project meets after you book, for confidentiality

Book your place     email, or call Adrienne on 07890 147806
Find out more           email, or call Adrienne on 07890 147806
 

Positively Women Changes

posted: 09/06/2010

Positively Women, based in London, has changed both its name and the focus of its work. As their website says "On 6 June, Positively Women entered a new and exciting chapter in its life. Following a major strategic review and process of consultation with service users and stakeholders we have extended our remit to reach both men and women living with HIV.

Positively UK retains its core ethos of peer support, with people living with HIV developing and delivering services. Our peer support services for women remain along with Positively Women magazine, and these now sit alongside services for men and young people."

About the changes

After 23 years, Positively Women has entered a new and exciting chapter of its life. In June 2010 following a major review of strategy, and consultation with service users and stakeholders they have decided to serve both men and women living with HIV.

It will retain its core ethos of peer support, with people living with HIV developing and delivering services. Peer support services for women will remain, alongside resources such as the Positively Women magazine. They will build on their strengths and provide peer support to new groups, notably men and young people. They are saying 'we are here to support people living with HIV across the UK'. That explains the change of name to Positively UK.

New Vision - A society where HIV and related health conditions are free from stigma and discrimination
New Mission - Positively UK champions the rights of people living with HIV and related health conditions

What they will do 

• Providing specialist and peer support, advocacy and information
• Campaigning against discrimination
• Promoting positive attitudes and equitable access to health
• Increasing involvement, voice and visibility

Ambition - To provide peer led support to all people living with HIV in the UK by 2020.
 

Why change the name after 23 years?
Positively Women has spent a year reviewing its strategy and future. The whole country faces a period of significant change and less public funding for services. Councils and the NHS are expected to reduce the number of contracts, and will favour general support organisations rather than specialists. Providing services specifically women, meant Positively Women would be vulnerable. It has already lost some funding because of this.
 

Gap for Peer Support

There is a lack of organisations providing peer led work - services led by people with HIV . Continuing to provide peer services to women, and extending this to men, meets a need and helps fill this gap. Changing the name reflects this.

Why Positively UK?
They have kept the word ‘Positively’ as the organisation remains committed to supporting people living with HIV. It also acknowledges and keeps a link to the past. Adding ‘UK’ makes it clear to people using services, to funders and others that the organisation is open to everyone living with HIV, across the country.
Replacing ‘Women’ in the name was a difficult decision and they realise many people will feel a sense of loss that the organisation is no longer called Positively Women. The name Positively Women  is close to many people’s hearts and is an assurance of dedicated services for women. They will keep the Positively Women brand for all their women’s services and have designed a new Positively Women logo.
This was developed with a design company Intertype who have helped before with their publications design including Positively Women magazine. Intertype came up with a series of designs for the new logo. Staff, volunteers and trustees were consulted and the new design was the most popular. People felt this was friendly and accessible. The designers did not charge and Positively UK designed and built their own new website.
 

Services for Women

Positively UK will have six strands of work. A main strand will continue to be Positively Women. Women still encounter gender and health inequalities, and women living with HIV have specific needs in their role as mothers and carers. Positively UK will continue to provide one-to-one and group peer support for women; women accessing services will still receive support from another positive woman.

Their current London support groups will remain women only and we will continue support for lesbian, bisexual and transgender women. Positively Women magazine will also remain women focused.

Positively UK will also continue to support the development of the national network of women living with HIV, PozFem-UK. They are also committed to new women’s services and over the next year are developing a project to support women through pregnancy and ante-natal care.
 

Services for Men Services for men will be developed under the accompanying strand of Positively Men.
 

Other services They already host Str8 Talk, a self-facilitating group for heterosexual men and women; and their Parenting and Caribbean groups are already open for men to attend. Additional peer support services are being developed for men and they are already recruiting and training male volunteers to be peer mentors providing one-to-one support, alongside female volunteers; in the meantime their London services are open to men.
 

Positively Youth
In early 2010 they ran a pilot project looking at the needs of young people living with HIV as they make the transition from adolescence to adulthood and paediatric to adult HIV services. They are looking for funding to implement a new programme for young people living with HIV, working in partnership with the 900 clinic at St Mary’s Hospital, in London.
 

Positively Health
Their prevention activities have focused upon the African communities as part of the Department of Health’s NAHIP programme. They aim to continue this and build on this to extending work in the community and with people living with HIV, and into HIV testing.
 

Positively Policy
The organisation remains committed to developing and supporting the involvement of people living with HIV in shaping policy, practice and services. PozFem-UK, the national network of women living with HIV, will continue to be developed and they are committed to developing a wider network to support all people living with HIV in consultations and policy responses.
 

Positively Information
Their website is their largest information tool for wider the public and people living with HIV. It's been redesigned along with the change of name.

Positively Women magazine

Positively Women magazine  continues to be the only magazine for women living with HIV written by women living with HIV. They are developing new materials to support other aspects of our work such as information for women around pregnancy and resources for young people.
 

Their new website - Positively UK

PozFem-UK website

Their questions and answers document about the changes - the information above comes from this.

Living More Confidently

posted: 07/05/2010

A self-help book by three clinical psychologists expert in HIV, stress and trauma, may help some people think more positively about living with HIV. The writers hope the book

• increases your knowledge about HIV
• helps you adjust better to having HIV
• builds confidence in yourself despite having HIV
• supports good relationships despite having HIV
• increases your life choices despite having HIV
• widens your support networks
• improves your quality of life with HIV
• gives you a more positive outlook and motivation for the future.

This book talks frankly about the issues that people living with HIV face. As HIV is associated with much fear and stigma, this self-help book covers aspects of living with HIV that may be difficult for people to discuss with others. Fears of talking about HIV and HIV disclosure are problems for many. They hope this book will help release some fears and lift some of the stigma that people experience.

This self-help book faces some of the psychological needs of people who are HIV positive. It answers frequently asked questions and it draws on the experts clinical experience of what works. They hope it helps normalise the experience of living with HIV, creates hope for change, and provides a way of learning new skills.

Who should read it
This book is for all adults living with HIV especially anyone struggling to accept and adapt to having HIV, including :

• Struggles with accepting diagnosis, in adjusting to HIV, and in finding a way forward
• Where health problems make reaching your goals uncertain
• People dealing with stress
• People who are isolated, unsupported and worried about talking openly about HIV
• People feeling overwhelmed by emotions to do with HIV
• People wanting to make changes in their lives
• People who want a better sense of living for a future and to make plans
• Partners, carers, family or friends who would like to understand more and support others better.

Living Confidently with HIV - A Self-Help Book for People living with HIV  £12.99
by Liz Shaw, Erasmo Tacconelli, Robert Watson and Claudia Herbert, London, 2009

You could order this at your local public library.

Another similar but free book

living with HIV  by NAM / aidsmap is online here  - printed copies are no longer available.

U+ mag for Positive Gay Men

posted: 16/04/2010

The latest issue of the new look U+ magazine for gay and bi men living with HIV is now out.

Livened up with more colour, this 4th issue features

• Positive and motivated
• Smoking: what poz guys should know
• Out of the dark thanks to HIV meds
• Let’s talk about sex (does having an undetectable viral load mean you can’t infect others?)
• plus a lot more.

You can download a copy or pick one up from a clinic, bar or HIV community organisation.