Gay Businesses - HIV Prevention
posted: 18/04/2011
Gay venues and businesses, like saunas, clubs, bars, profile and other gay websites, travel agencies and hotels, can either help reduce, or may increase the numbers of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) among gay, bi and other men who have sex with men (MSM).
There’s a new guide which sets out for businesses standards that will help not hinder HIV prevention called Everywhere. It comes from the University of Brighton.
Persuading gay businesses to help reduce the numbers of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) needs more than persuasion skills, it needs HIV prevention organisations to have ways of selling the advantages of HIV and STI prevention to these businesses.
Sex sells, so how can HIV prevention help these businesses sell themselves? The answers and training for HIV prevention organisations are provided in a training manual to go with the prevention standards manual for gay businesses.
One part of the training manual is called ‘Incentives for MSM business to be socially responsible’ and another is about working with hostile businesses. The training manual for helping HIV prevention organisations work with gay serving businesses to reduce HIV and other STI transmissions, is the Training Workbook on Social Mediation with Gay and MSM Businesses regarding HIV/STI prevention.
Both the standards for businesses and the the training manual are the work of the Europe-wide Everywhere Consortium for HIV prevention and their website has sections for gay men’s HIV and sexual health organisations, for businesses serving gay and bi men, and for gay men a section of the website lists venues and businesses which meet these HIV and sexual health prevention standards. So far few businesses are listed as meeting these standards - in the UK there are some in London and Brighton; in France some in Paris, in Spain some in Madrid, for example.
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Reasons for Travelling to Clinics
posted: 09/12/2010
Most people with HIV in England live within 5km (3 miles) of a specialist HIV clinic, according to a new study. The average distance people travel to their clinic was 2.5km (just over 1.5 miles). However, fewer than 1 in 10 people with HIV use the clinic that is nearest to their home. Why do people travel to a clinic further away?
Researchers wanted to see how far people live from a HIV clinic, and understand why some people travel further than they have to for HIV care.
Choice and advice on chosing clinics
People have the right to choose which HIV clinic to use and the British HIV Association recommends people who require routine, uncomplicated care to use their local clinic, and that people with more complex needs should use a more specialised clinic.
Not much has been studied about travelling to HIV clinics in the UK, nor about the social, demographic or clinical characteristics associated with people's choices about travelling to a HIV clinic.
Over 46,000 people studied
To get a clearer understanding of clinic travel, researchers looked at data on 46,550 HIV-positive adults who received HIV care in England in 2007. They pinpointed the closest HIV clinic for each person. All clinics within 5km of a someone’s home are considered ‘local’.
They looked at the wealth in each person’s borough of residence, and the person’s ethnicity, HIV risk category, length of HIV diagnosis, and HIV treatment status.
What they found – urban and often poor
Most (66%) of the people were men and 50% were white. The great majority (95%) live in an urban area, and 42% live in an economically deprived area. Almost three-quarters (73%) were on HIV treatments.
The median distance travelled to their clinic was 2.5km; but this ranged from less than 1km to 80km (50 miles). People in London travelled less than everyone else (2km vs. 3.7km).
Clinic access is good: 81% live within 5km of a specialist HIV clinic, and 93% live within 10km.
In London people had an average choice of three clinics within 5km, but those living outside the capital average just one local clinic.
The average distance travelled by patients to their clinic was a little under 5km. Overall, 73% use a local clinic. However, only 9% used the clinic closest to where they lived.
Reasons for travelling further
Haemophilia - People who were infected with HIV by blood products (mainly haemophiliacs infected during an old UK blood scandal) were most likely to travel further (51%). “These patients may need to attend specialist services that are not provided locally,” comment the authors.
Urban – People living in urban areas were significantly more likely to attend a non-local clinic than those who live in rural areas (44% vs. 22%) – people in major towns and cities are more likely to have a local choice. People living in rural areas and smaller towns have less or no choice nearby. Travelling to the next clinic is also less practical.
Ethnicity - Black African and black Caribbean people were statistically rather less likely to travel beyond their local service than white people.
Length of diagnosis - How long people have been diagnosed also affected travelling distance. People who had been diagnosed for at least a year were 50% more likely to use a clinic over 5km away service than those diagnosed within the last year (27% vs. 20). The investigators suggest “this may be because patients may not become aware of the choices available to them until they have adjusted to their HIV diagnosis.”
Poverty - Wealth also significantly affects the choice of clinic. People who lived in the better areas were twice as likely as those living in the poorest districts to travel further for treatment (42% vs. 21%). The investigators suggest that “financial difficulty” may prevent some people from travelling to clinics further away. Another recent study showed that almost a third of people with HIV in the UK did not have enough money to meet their needs and that 10% had difficulty meeting travel costs.
Help with paying to travel
If you have a low income or are on benefits, you may have a right to help with the costs of travelling to your clinic. Here's information on help with hospital travel costs.
“Barriers to service choice are likely to related to poverty and unfamiliarity with the options for HIV care,” conclude the authors, “consequently, provision of local services remains vital.”
Source including reference details
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Advice for Stranded Travellers
posted: 21/04/2010
Some people with HIV, stranded by the air travel chaos following the Icelandic volcano’s ash cloud, are running out of HIV medications. Here’s what to do.
It is very important to provide as much documentation as possible in order to limit the cost to you.
Stuck in the UK?
People with HIV stuck in the United Kingdom who are running out of HIV medication can approach HIV clinics in the UK for medication, but may be charged at the discretion of the clinic. Whether an individual is charged will depend on their country of residence.Find a clinic using NAM's database of services.
If you are from a country in the European Economic Area (European Union plus Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland) you will not be charged, if you produce your European Health Insurance card. If you cannot produce your card, you will be charged and issued with a receipt, and you can claim the cost when you return home. If you do not have this card, you can obtain one from your country's embassy in the United Kingdom, usually within 24 hours.
If you are stuck in the UK but from a country outside the EEA that has a reciprocal health agreement with the United Kingdom, you will not be charged if you can show your passport. Countries with reciprocal agreements
If your stuck in the UK and your country of residence does NOT have a reciprocal health agreement with the UK, you will be charged.
Examples of help and BHIVA's advice
In London a number of National Health Service HIV clinics are issuing medication. At the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for example, individuals needing medication can obtain an appointment with an HIV doctor and will receive a prescription for two weeks’ worth of medication.
Policies may vary at other clinics, and British HIV Association chairman Dr Ian Williams is writing to all HIV doctors in the UK to ask them to be flexible if approached by patients who are not registered at their clinic.
In addition to the cost of drugs, some clinics may charge a fee for the consultation with a doctor.
Stuck outside the UK?
People with HIV from the UK who are stranded overseas can approach local HIV clinics or support organisations for help. You can search for organisations and clinics by country here.
What you pay will depend on the country where you are stuck. If you have the European Health Insurance card, you can use this throughout the European Economic Area to obtain whatever is freely available through the local health system. You will have to pay any local costs that would be normally met by local residents from their own pockets or health insurance, such as co-payments on medicines.
A similar situation applies for countries with reciprocal health agreements. You can check the list and find out what is freely available here and find general advice for British citizens on health care abroad here.
Get an email/fax from your clinic
Your clinic in the UK should be able to provide a letter, by email or fax, to the foreign hospital detailing what treatment you are receiving and what drugs you need - in particular the correct dosages. Many HIV doctors may be away this week, attending the British HIV Association annual conference in Manchester. If you do not have contact details for other staff at your HIV clinic, you can find them here.
An NHS prescription is not valid overseas and you may need to obtain an appointment with a doctor in order to get a foreign prescription, but this will not be the case in all countries. In some countries it you can buy anti-retrovirals from a pharmacy without a prescription.
Source
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USA HIV Travel Ban Goes
posted: 13/01/2010
On 4 January the USA travel ban on people living with HIV was finally ended. Notoriously the Dutchman Hans Paul Verhoff was refused entry into the U.S. in 1989 to speak at a HIV conference in San Francisco. Many people then boycotted the 6th International Conference on AIDS in San Francisco in 1990.
What began first as an administrative ban then became law in 1987 (through action by the homophobic republican Senator Jesse Helms) and this was reinforced in 1993.
The travel ban prevented visits to the USA by people with HIV apart from in exceptional circumstances. Officially people with HIV had to apply for a special permission. It was a difficult and slow process and many were refused. The stigmatising nature of the ban was reinforced because your passport was marked in a way which showed you have HIV.
The ban was widely ignored, but often people with HIV were detected by US immigration staff and then refused entry and deported. Others took risks with their health by interrupting their HIV treatment to enter without HIV being discovered.
Washington 2012 International AIDS Conference confirmed
Now the ban has been lifted the International AIDS Society has confirmed that the 2012 International AIDS Conference will be held in Washington DC. 3 in 100 living in the US capital have HIV, well above the threshold for a severe, generalised epidemic, which is 1%.
UK passport holders with HIV who wish to visit the US can now complete the green 'visa waiver' form that allows routine entry to the USA.
South Korea relaxes rules
The South Korean government has also announced that entry restrictions on people who don’t need a visa to enter were lifted from January 1st.
International HIV travel summary
A list of countries and their entry policies for people with HIV can be in NamLife here.
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Travelling to Hospitals?
posted: 18/09/2009
Find out about public transport to hospitals in Greater Manchester with a new leaflet. It’s got information on choosing the right ticket for your journey, cheap tickets, checking bus times by mobile phone, where to get information on which buses will take you to hospital and advice on fares. Some people can get free travel or other help getting to hospitals. You can download the leaflet here
leaflet for your hospital
At this web page you can download leaflets for how to find your way to whichever hospital you need to go to in Greater Manchester
You can also call the Traveline 0871 200 22 33 (10p per minute from a landline)
You can get all the hospital travel leaflets in large print or on tape by telephoning 0781 200 22 33 (call cost 10p per minute from landlines). Lines are open 7am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.
How can you travel for less?
If you cannot use buses because you are disabled, you may be able to claim GMPTE Travel Vouchers to help with the costs of transport.
You may qualify for travel vouchers if you are a resident in Greater Manchester and:
- you are registered blind or
- you are in receipt of DLA (Disability Living Allowance Higher Rate Mobility Component), or
- you are in receipt of Higher Rate Attendance Allowance, or
- you are in receipt of the War Pensioners Mobility Supplement
For further information contact the GMPTE passes and permits department on 0161 244 1050.
For advice on the best way to travel to hospital and for timetables for the bus services please visit you local GMPTE Travelshop situated at all Bus Stations or phone the Traveline 0871 200 22 33 (10p per minute from a landline) or the travelline website . You can also order timetables and leaflets by calling the Traveline number - Traveline 0871 200 22 33 (10p per minute from a landline).
Patients on low income may be entitled to claim back travel costs. For details ask for Leaflet HC11 from your local post office, from the Department for Work and Pensions or ask at the hospital’s Cashiers’s Office.
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