Comforted Creatures with HIV

posted: 04/11/2010

We produced this animation (with apologies to Ardman Animation’s Creature Comforts) as a serious but amusing presentation on some of our work, for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

We interviewed people with HIV who have benefited from our positive prevention work and residential weekends, funded by the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
 

Excellent Presentation

After presenting all our work to the Foundation's panel, they told us:

George House Trust were the first to present and I have to say set a standard that was not replicated. If there was ever a lesson on how to do an interesting presentation, that was it.

Lynda and Colin spoke with passion about the work, the achievements so far and the publication of initial outcomes (they had the BHIVA/NHIVNA poster displayed).

An individual talked very openly and honestly about how he had benefited from the programme and to top it all we were treated to an animated film with people’s real experiences of the support and help they had received.

A perfect presentation with something for everyone - excellent! 

Watch and listen at George House Trust on Facebook

Risks and HIV Status

posted: 26/10/2010

Gay men using London gyms are revealing more about choosing their partners and taking risks with anal sex. The latest annual sex risk survey of gay men at London gyms has appeared. 36% of the 648 men taking part in 2008 had anal sex without condoms in the previous year. Condomless anal sex is becoming more common, but this headline “masks a more complex picture,” which varies with HIV status, the researchers say.
 

Same HIV status or different status: more risks
Men are now having more sex without condoms with partners who have the same HIV status, than with men whose HIV status is different or unknown to them. But there are also more men reporting sex without condoms with a main partner whose HIV status is unknown or different.
 

1 in 3 taking risks but more choose same HIV status partners
The first study, in 1998, found 24% of men had unprotected anal intercourse in the previous three months. By 2008 this was up to 36%. But in both the two latest surveys (2005 and 2008), more men report having unprotected sex with men of the same HIV status as themselves (“sero-sorting”) than with men of unknown, assumed or different HIV status. In 2008 21% reported condomless anal sex with men of the same status and 16% reported this with men of unknown, assumed or different status.
 

Some positive men choosing positive
Among HIV-positive men in 2008, 14% sero-sorted (chose a partner who is also HIV+) their casual partners. 10% of the HIV-positive men have a main partner who also has HIV.
 

Negative men rarely choose casual partners by HIV status
Among men who reported that their last HIV test was negative, less than 2% chose casual partners who are also HIV negative. However 21% had unprotected sex with a main partner whose last HIV test was also negative. The proportion of supposed HIV negative men reporting condomless sex with men who also last tested HIV negative has risen to 21% since 1998, when 12% reported it.
 

Test together or just talk?
The researchers are worried about how HIV-negative men decide their main partner is also HIV negative. While four in ten men took the HIV test together, the others only talked about their status. This is not good enough, because the longer the time since the last test and the risks taken since that test mean the test result may now be wrong.
 

Men’s relationship risks
Men’s main relationships seem to be where more risks are now being taken, although the numbers are low. There have been significant increases in the numbers of men reporting having unprotected sex with a main partner of unknown, assumed or different HIV status between 2005 and 2008.
 

Positive men risks
Among HIV positive men, 2.5% reported having unprotected sex with a main partner of unknown, assumed or different HIV status in 2005, and it was 8.1% in 2008. For about half the positive men, in fact their partner’s HIV status was known to be HIV-negative.
 

A significant proportion of HIV-positive men (19%) report unprotected sex with casual partners of an unknown or assumed HIV status, although this has fallen a lot compared with the earlier surveys.
 

Negative men risks down
Fewer than 6% of HIV-negative men report unprotected sex with casual partners of an unknown or assumed HIV status, the lowest level in these gym surveys. The researchers comment: “This is an encouraging trend and is likely to reflect consistent and sustained health promotion campaigns targeting gay men.”
 

Summing up, the researchers say that their data “suggest that main partners may have become an important source of HIV risk among London’s gay men.” They recommend that more health promotion campaigns should focus on HIV risk within relationships and on HIV testing among couples.
 

Source with reference details

Positive Prevention goes to Scotland

posted: 15/10/2010

George House Trust hosted the national expert symposium on Positive Prevention here in spring this year, and now we are off to Edinburgh. Positive Prevention means support for people with HIV to avoid passing on HIV.
 

We’ve been asked to give a presentation on our work supporting gay and bi men with HIV, including our newlydiagnosed course and residential weekends. So we are leading a session at Gaycon, the conference for gay and bisexual men’s sexual health promotion in Scotland. In England and Wales, we have a CHAPS conference.
 

Gaycon conference details

Conference presentations

Positive Gay Men’s Weekend

posted: 13/10/2010

The next of these popular residential weekends for HIV positive gay men will be in early November, in Whaley Bridge. The residential weekend is an opportunity to explore and discuss issues around living with HIV, with other men, in a safe and comfortable environment.
 

The weekend is led by Colin Armstead, George House Trust Service and Development Manager, and Alistair Gault, a freelance trainer. A George House Trust counsellor will also be available over the weekend.
 

You must have been diagnosed HIV positive for longer than 12 months to take part in the weekend.
 

Transport, meals and accommodation are all provided free of charge, with funding from the Elton John Aids Foundation.
 

When?
Friday November 5th (early evening) to Sunday evening 7th May 2010
 

What other men say
'The weekend has given me a real boost and I feel now like I can face some of my issues in a constructive way and really move forward'
Thanks for a great weekend which has helped me think about how I deal with some of my fears and anxieties about living with HIV'
The weekend gave me a sense of space and safety to be able to talk more confidently about living with HIV now and in the future'
 

Booking
If you would like to know more about the weekend, or you would like to book a place, please email Colin or call him on 0161 274 4499.

Booking Form

Body Positive Blackpool Saved

posted: 05/10/2010

Body Positive in Blackpool has been saved by two local councillors who donated £6,500. Body Positive in Blackpool feared it would only survive until next year after it discovered its employee Bianca Campbell had stolen £4,127 using its bank card to buy things for her own botox company, Fresh Face.
Redundancies and cuts

As a result of Campbell's theft and a £15,000 cut in local authority funding, Body Positive Blackpool made two staff redundant and cut its services.  But last week the charity was giving a reprieve after Labour councillors Simon Blackburn and Gary Coleman donated £6,500 to keep the charity running.
Bianca Campbell, who was sacked in March when her theft was discovered, pleaded guilty to fraud at Preston Crown Court.
 

The court heard Campbell used a Body Positive Blackpool bankcard to order products for her own business. Campbell was given a total of six months prison, suspended for a year, with 12 months supervision.
 

Body Positive Blackpool 
 

Source