Annual report, Independent Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV.

  • Independent Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV (Great Britain)
Date:
2006
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: Annual report, Independent Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    20/24 page 20
    As well as ensuring the availability of free condoms in easily visible places, the centre promotes ‘Fastest’, a non-invasive HIV test which takes an hour and is available on-site. They hope to expand ‘Fastest’ to screen for other STIs. Nelson is looking at different and innovative forms of contact such as using the internet to target sex workers. The centre is in touch with 10 male sex workers who advertise on the web and looking to convert them to ‘health promoters’ who pass on resources and information to their clients. Terrence Higgins Trust Bristol also targets African groups with health promotion messages. “We do a great deal of outreach with the African communities to promote messages of prevention. Statistically, heterosexual Africans are at the greatest risk of contracting HIV. We particularly target barber shops and hairdressers as we know they are a meeting place for conversation for African men and women. “We're based in an ethnically diverse area of town, and that helps when we're trying to target ethnic groups,” says Nelson when discussing their work “Our staffis trained in understanding the different needs of the African community. “Apart from faith groups, there arent that many community settings where we can reach African women who are a very important source of education in the community,’ he says. “We see that we're having an impact by the increase in African women coming through our doors as a result of our health promotion.” Resources for this outreach work are not lavish — one part-time female worker is responsible for much of the success, and Nelson is very concerned that some of their printed promotional material has to be photocopied, which means the work does not look as professional as he would like. The group is keen to link with its local PCT and City Council, and is hosting a conference for professionals in the field, including faith and community leaders, to explore how to reach community groups effectively Aside from CHAPS, Street Work and Fastest, everything the health promotion team does is funded by Bristol, B & NES, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire PCTs, and the funding is attached to specific targets in relation to services for gay and bisexual men and African communities. Nelson can see many ways to improve Terrence Higgins Trust Bristol's results in the community, while working with PCTs to achieve their goals. “We would like PCTs to consider additional funding, for example, for a sectional worker for the African outreach and support”.
    digitised image 1
    digitised image 2
    digitised image 3