Today is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Knowing your status is the best way to protect your health…and residents of Pennsylvania can get a free in-home HIV test kit from our website www.getmyHIVtest.com. Tests come in the mail, in an unmarked package and you get the results in 20 minutes!
The theme for NWGHAAD 2023 is: Prevention and Testing at Every Age. Care and Treatment at Every Stage.The Office Of Women’s Health (OWH) continues this theme to reemphasize the need to further prevention efforts and ensure equity in HIV care and treatment. It also reinforces the first 3 goals of the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), that focus on the prevention of new HIV infections, improving HIV-related health outcomes of people living with HIV, and reducing HIV-related disparities. NWGHAAD focuses efforts on three of the target populations outlined in the NHAS; Black women, transgender women, and youth aged 13-24 years.
Today is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. CDC data shows that Black/African American are at a higher risk for HIV infection as compared to other races and ethnicities. Why? Because these communities are impacted by demographic factors such as discrimination, stigma, and institutionalized health disparities—all of which affect their risk for HIV.
If you reside in Pennsylvania, you can get a free HIV self-test kit delivered through the mail. Go to www.getmyHIVtest.com to order your kit today.
If you live outside of PA, you can go to the CDC’s testing locator website at https://gettested.cdc.gov/.
Knowing your status will protect you and your partner’s health.
Anthony “Tony” Silvestre, whose work with the LGBT community was far ahead of its time and made the pioneering Pitt Men’s Study possible, died Sept. 1, 2022 at 75.
Dr. Silvestre on the cover of Pittsburgh’s Out Magazine in May 1984
[…] His international advocacy and public health work began at Penn State (1971-76), continued with several Philadelphia organizations (1976-83) and brought him to Pitt in early 1984 until his retirement in 2018.
In 1976, he was the founding chairman of the Pennsylvania Governor’s Council on Sexual Minorities, likely the first such state organization in the country. He was U.S. liaison to the World Health Organization (1990-93) and a subject matter expert on HIV for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2002.
Through the years, he served on many expert and advisory panels for the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Allegheny County Department of Health on HIV, alcohol and substance use among gender and sexual minorities, community marginalization and health education and outreach.
But he is perhaps best known in Pittsburgh for his role in forming and running the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force (now Allies for Health and Wellbeing) in its early years. In the process, he supported more than a dozen other state and community groups promoting LGBTQIA-related and HIV-related health messaging for at-risk communities.
In conjunction with his research and teaching in the Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, he founded the Pennsylvania Prevention Project (now the HIV Prevention and Care Project) there in 1993 to advance comprehensive HIV planning with impacted communities. He also helped create and direct the School of Public Health’s Center for LGBT Research, and was honored by Pitt with the Chancellor’s Distinguished Service Award.
He published more than 45 peer-reviewed articles, proceedings and book chapters, and created many state and federal professional reports and presentations as well, much of which can be found at Dickinson College.
If you or someone you love has been affected by HIV, the PA Department of Health and the HIV Prevention and Care Project at the University of Pittsburgh need your input.
This plan guides all activities related to HIV prevention and care in Pennsylvania. Feedback will help the Division of HIV Disease most effectively plan for the ongoing needs of all people served in Pennsylvania.
According to a 2020 CDC report, out of more than 30,000 new cases of HIV infection in the United States, Black and Latinx populations bear the brunt of being most at risk, accounting for two-thirds (20,000) of the new infections. The reason (the CDC also reports) is due to institutionalized health disparities among those groups. In other words, Black and Latinx people face higher levels of discrimination when seeking health care.
To help address the issue, the HIV Prevention and Care Project at the University of Pittsburgh, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Expanded HIV Testing Initiative at Penn State University created a state-wide program that allows residents of Pennsylvania to obtain a free HIV self-test kit through the mail.
The free test kits use an oral swab and you get results in 20 minutes
Knowing your HIV status is the first step in preventing the spread of the virus. People who test positive can obtain treatment that keeps the virus in check, and therefore makes it next to impossible to spread to others.
To obtain a free HIV self-test kit, go to www.getmyHIVtest.com. Taking care of your health is part of taking care of your community.
May 19th is National Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. This observance, led by the San Francisco Community Health Center, raises awareness of the impact of HIV and AIDS, risk, and stigma surrounding HIV in the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community.
In recent years, annual HIV diagnoses have increased among some in the API community, such as API young adults and men who have sex with men. Knowing your status gives you powerful information so that you can take steps to lower your HIV risk and take charge of your health. Use the HIV Testing Sites & Care Services Locator to find a clinic near you or select from the self-testing options available.
In addition, the CDC Let’s Stop HIV Together campaign offers resources that promote testing and treatment for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders.
Saturday, April 10, marks National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day (NYHAAD) 2021. Traditionally, it’s a “day to educate the public about the impact of HIV and AIDS on young people,” according to the nonprofit Advocates for Youth, which spearheads NYHAAD.
The group adds, “The day also highlights the HIV prevention, treatment and care campaigns of young people in the U.S.”
This year, the HIV awareness day also includes a call to action. Youth advocates want you to help them convince Congress to pass the REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act. “REPEAL” stands for: “Repeal Existing Policies that Encourage and Allow Legal” HIV Discrimination.
The REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act aims to modernize HIV crime laws, such as those that set harsh sentences for people with HIV who allegedly don’t disclose their status before sex—even if they’re undetectable and HIV was not transmitted. (To read a collection of POZ articles about such laws and efforts to change them, click #Criminalization.)
You can support Advocates for Youth’s call to action by filling out an online form that will generate a letter to send to members of Congress.
The Let’s Stop HIV Together campaign is recruiting community members to be a part of audience-specific community listening session groups. These groups will provide an opportunity for the campaign to hear from community members impacted by HIV. The groups will discuss attitudes, values, and beliefs at the individual and community level related to HIV and how these might shape health behaviors.
The community listening session groups for this year are:
Transgender women
MSM
Older adults with HIV
Heterosexual, cisgender, Black men and women
Young Adults
Spanish speaking Hispanics/Latinos
Audience specific announcements are included here as attachments. If there are individuals in your network that may be interested in sharing their insights and experiences with the campaign, please pass on the appropriate announcement and encourage them to fill out the screening questionnaire. The deadline to apply is 11:59 PM EST on March 25, 2022.
The campaign is looking for a diverse group of people who are:
Over the age of 18
Fluent in English (ability to speak Spanish is a plus)
Living with HIV or HIV negative status
Comfortable sharing experiences with HIV and other related experiences
Available to participate in two virtual community discussions between late April and June 2022, each lasting approximately 2 hours. If you are selected, we will follow up to schedule specific dates and times.
Available to participate in two virtual community discussions between late April and June 2022, each lasting approximately 2 hours. If you are selected, we will follow up to schedule specific dates and times.
All participants will be compensated $150 per session (two sessions for a total of $300) for their participation. Some prep time may be requested, such as reviewing documents prior to the session.
If there are any questions related to the opportunity, please reach out to the recruitment coordinator Kevin Hernandez at khernandez@fhi360.org.
Monday, February 7, marks National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD) 2022. By numerous measures, Black Americans are disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic. NBHAAD highlights related challenges while raising awareness about prevention, testing, treatment and more.
“This #NBHAAD we are focused on equity,” tweeted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of HIV Prevention, adding: “We must end unequal access to #HIV prevention & care, & address root causes that contribute to disparities in HIV such as poverty, stigma, systemic racism, & unequal access to healthcare & education.”
In 2020, African Americans represented 12% of the U.S. population age 13 and older but accounted for 43% of new HIV diagnoses, according to AIDSVu.org, which analyzes HIV data and creates related infographics and interactive maps.
Disproportionate HIV rates are more pronounced in the South, where in 2020, Black Americans accounted for 52% of new HIV diagnoses but made up only 19% of the population in that region.
Are you a resident of Pennsylvania who has been impacted by HIV/AIDS? Consider volunteering for the HIV Planning Group (HPG)! The HPG contributes to the development of the HIV Prevention and Care Plan for the State Department of Health. The Plan implements ongoing activities to reduce HIV and improve the quality of life of people living with HIV.
You can apply to the HPG at https://tinyurl.com/ApplyHPG . Applications will be accepted until December 10th, 2021.
