Update: Gender & Sexual Health Initiative

Here is an update on recent activities and publications of the Gender & Sexual Health Initiative (GSHI) of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. GSHI is an umbrella program of research projects both locally and internationally, focused on gender, sexual health, and HIV/AIDS, with particular attention on the intersections with social inequities, public policy, and access to care. This program reflects multiple community partnerships and collaborations.

  • GSHI was recently awarded one of six large team grants across Canada on gender, violence and health from the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health. This grant will support policy-oriented research, student training opportunities, and knowledge exchange between key stakeholders (e.g. community, public, policy makers) on gender, violence and HIV in Canada and comparative international settings (e.g., Uganda, India, Thailand).
  • As part of the gender, violence and HIV team, GSHI is working with the World Health Organization (WHO) to conduct systematic reviews of the links between violence and HIV among sex workers globally. This review will inform a consultation and development of best practice guidelines on HIV/STI prevention, treatment and care among sex workers in 2012, held jointly by WHO, UN, and the Global Network of Sex Work Projects (NSWP): A letter with more information is here. In addition to peer-review literature, if you are aware of any grey literature (policy reports, community reports) on successful interventions addressing violence and associated HIV risks in the sex industry, please forward to us at: [email protected]. All work included will be cited in the final review.

To view recent publications from GSHI, please visit their website here.