In light of December 1st marking World AIDS Day*, PAN staff have taken some time to consider achievements and progress made around HIV in the past year in British Columbia (BC) and Canada, as well as our work here at PAN.
New Year’s Day of 2018 was momentous for BC, as the provincial government announced it will provide universal coverage for the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication Truvada. This was a move that was advocated for by a number of organizations, notably the Community Based Research Centre for Gay Men’s Health, YouthCO, and the Health Initiative for Men. This advocacy work was supported by PAN and we applaud this change. Following the announcement, in August 2018, the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS announced that it will begin an education program to train nurse practitioners in prescribing antiretrovirals for prevention (PrEP and post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP) and treatment of HIV. Alberta followed BC’s footsteps in September 2018, announcing universal coverage for PrEP during Calgary Pride. You can find more resources about PrEP on PAN’s website, as well as guidelines for PrEP from the BC Centre for Excellence.
This year, PAN continued to explore the ever present issue of stigma through our BC People Living with HIV Stigma Index Project (BC Stigma Index). Recent analysis of BC Stigma Index data included the finding that 25% of respondents had avoided care for HIV in the past year. This leads to deeper questions surrounding what leads to avoiding care around HIV, and how those factors can be effectively addressed. In addition to our work here at PAN, many other countries worldwide have undertaken studies using the International Stigma Index tool. Find out more about global work using the Stigma Index.
Stigma was also addressed at the 2018 International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam in relation to HIV and criminalization, where a consensus statement was released that critiqued laws criminalizing HIV transmission, exposure and non-disclosure that are not based in most recent scientific understandings of transmission and risk. This has huge implications for the nature of criminal laws surrounding HIV world-wide, including laws here in Canada. Find out more about the International AIDS Conference and the consensus statement.
Finally, June 27th, 2018 marked Canada’s first National HIV Testing Day. The event was held in 43 sites nationwide, and aimed to help identify individuals living with HIV who may not know their status, as well as provide information and education on harm reduction practices and sexual health. Several clinics across the Lower Mainland offered testing, including rapid, point-of-care HIV tests.
While much work remains to be done, we at PAN are hopeful and pleased to see this progress. We are also excited to continue this journey, well supported and in allyship with our members and partners, and we look forward to continue learning from our communities. We know that this dedicated work and passion from community organizations will continue, and that we will see progress in prevention, treatment, care, and support around HIV in the years to come.
*Are you planning an event for World AIDS Day? Send your events to Janet, and they will be shared in our annual World AIDS Day calendar.
Questions? Comments? Please contact Madeline Gallard, CBR and Evaluation Assistant at [email protected].