- Conference
- 2010 Health Care Service Group Conference
- Date
- 1 December 2009
- Decision
- Carried
This conference notes from the HIV & AIDS in the North West of England 2008 Report, that there has been an increase of 13 % of people newly diagnosed with HIV in the North West between 2007 and 2008. For the same period, there is a 24% increase in Lancashire.
Overall there has been an increase in new cases by 176% since 2000. However, the most striking change is the 401% increase in heterosexual infections. This is a trend that has been noted nationally and is accompanied by an increasing proportion of infections contracted overseas and amongst BME individuals.
The most affected group of infection has altered over the years. In 2000, Men having Sex with Men (MSM) still accounted for the majority of new HIV infections (56%) but by 2002 heterosexual sex overtook MSM for the first time as the main group of HIV exposure and this has continued into 2008. By 2008, almost half of new cases were infected among heterosexual individuals (48%).
These figures show that HIV is not going away and the excellent work which has been carried out so far need sto be continued with
·More education
·More resources
·More training
·A higher priority in Health Promotion
Therefore, conference instructs the Health Service Group Executive to use the most appropriate channels at their disposal to urge health care commissioners to:
1.Make HIV and AIDS awareness a higher priority in Health Promotion, by instructing/ asking/ writing to Health Care Commissioners to provide more resources to People living with HIV. This will allow infected individuals to set up support networks and in turn support newly diagnosed individuals when they need such support most.
2.Make HIV and AIDS awareness mandatory training to all staff working in any healthcare settings
3.To instruct the NEC to write to Alan Johnson (MP), Secretary of Health, and other Health Ministers to implement the above actions or to have discussions with the National Health Committee in providing a new action plan on HIV and AIDS prevention in the UK.