It’s a question I often hear on World AIDS Day (Dec. 1), when much of our attention turns to the global HIV epidemic.
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“While achievements such as this should most certainly be celebrated, they can often be accompanied by a sense of desensitisation, where the severity of the epidemic can be minimised in the minds of people”, says van den Barselaar, who warns that this can become risky. In East Asia and the Pacific, deaths have increased from 1,000 to 1,300 over the same period. Basuki has also allowed medication for HIV-related illnesses to be covered in the government’s health insurance scheme, known as BPJS Kesehatan.
Children born with the virus were dying in their teens because there was not enough treatment aimed at adolescents, McClure said. That adds up to a trebling of adolescent HIV deaths worldwide since 2000.
The data reveal that now among adolescents (15-19): 26 new infections occur every hour; and about half of those living with HIV are in just six countries: South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, India, Mozambique and Tanzania.
The theme echoes the UNAIDS vision of achieving Zero new HIV infections.
“We have the biggest HIV treatment programme in the world, with more than three million of our people on life-saving antiretrovirals”, he said.
Speaking of the rise in infections, World Health Organisation director for Europe Dr Zsuzsanna Jakab said: “Despite all the efforts to fight HIV, this year the European Region has reached over 142,000 new HIV infections, the highest number ever… this is a serious concern”.
“We’ve collectively dropped the ball in the second decade of childhood”, said Craig McClure, the chief of UNICEF’s HIV and AIDS division. “HIV/AIDS is a real threat in our community and we must continue our advocacy and push towards greater access to treatment for all”.
While mobile dating apps, for example, can enable risky behaviour, they also provide opportunities to promote healthy behaviour.
World AIDS Day is an important event since it reminds the public and government that HIV has not gone away and there is still a vital need to raise money, increase awareness and HIV testing, fight prejudice and improve education.
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SCHHS is joining with Queensland Injectors Health Network (QuIHN) and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sexual health team to encourage people to talk about HIV at a community barbecue at 59 Sixth Avenue, Cotton Tree on Tuesday, December 1, 2015. We need to address discrimination and criminalisation of at-risk groups.
