Views

PIP is a lifeline for thousands of people living with HIV – it has to be protected.

A prescription model will help to stop new cases and alleviate the pressures faced by many women with HIV.

30% of sexual health services in rural England don’t offer this postal service

International Women’s Day (8 March 2018) is a time to celebrate the achievements of women, but it’s also an opportunity to highlight what more needs to be done in the struggle for equality. And this year’s official theme, #PressforProgress, reflects this. Women living with or at risk of HIV in the UK continue to be impacted by complex and nuanced issues that relate to gender and other inequalities. We’d love for women to get in touch on twitter @NAT_AIDS Trust or at [email protected] to let us know what you think are the major issues affecting women living with HIV today, and how NAT might help.

Confidentiality of patient information is one of the most ancient and important principles of medicine. If doctors tell other people what we tell them, many of us would avoid healthcare and as a result get sick, and possibly die. Infectious diseases would spread in the population unchecked. That’s why there are well established rules in law and medical ethics both to require confidentiality and also lay down the rare circumstances where confidentiality might be breached.

A new Private Member’s Bill is attracting widespread attention and support, including a moving feature on BBC’s The One Show this week (29 January 2018). The Bill admirably aims to increase protection for emergency workers who suffer assaults at work, with a focus on tougher sentencing laws.[1] But one part of the Bill is alarming to us at NAT, and other public health experts. This part will make it an offence, punishable by fine, for suspects to refuse to be tested for infectious diseases following spitting and biting incidents.

One year before she died, in the summer of 1996, Diana, Princess of Wales, resigned from almost 100 charities of which she had been patron or president. Instead she chose to concentrate on just six which she felt most passionately about. One of them was the National Aids Trust, which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary.

As part of the Jo Cox Lonliness Forum’s focus on loneliness and disability, Andy reflects on how specialised HIV support services made a difference to him after his diagnosis.

Ever since the abolition of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) was announced, we at NAT have heard a lot of anxiety from people living with HIV about Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which is being brought in to replace DLA.

Last week the Government published the 2017 Drugs Strategy, the first national drugs strategy since 2010. The previous drug strategy was heavily criticised for its focus on abstinence, and little mention of harm reduction initiatives. The 2017 Drugs Strategy unfortunately does not go much further.

In two years, investment in community based HIV prevention decreased by over a third in London. This coincided with significant Government cuts to the public health grant. In the same period, there has been reduction in HIV diagnoses amongst MSM in some parts of the city. So, do the funding cuts to prevention matter? If we want to sustain and build on our success, then yes, they matter a lot.

Last month newspapers reported the trial and conviction of a man who had gone berserk in a Manchester hotel, during which he both caused criminal damage and bit a police officer who had been called to the scene to restrain him. Deplorable of course, though sadly not that uncommon an event. But there was a twist to this story, fastened on in newspaper headlines:

“‘Vile coward’ salesman with HIV deliberately BIT family man copper in shock hotel assault”