Bitter pill protest outside Parliament ActionAid demonstrated outside Downing Street and Parliament on June 7, calling on the G8 group of rich nations to do more to fight HIV and Aids. ActionAid says the UK has a shortfall in its donations to the Global Fund for 2005 of £74 million. It has so far pledged $32 million to the Fund against a fair share estimate of £106 million.

THT mounts stout defence of PEP campaign for gay men

• THT has sparked a wave of controversy with a new campaign advocating post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for gay men exposed to HIV.
  PEP, which can counter the effects of exposure to HIV, has been available to medics for some years.
  But the emergency treatment has largely been reserved in the UK for doctors and nurse potentially exposed to HIV through needle-stick injuries. It needs to be taken within 72 hours of exposure to be effective at stopping transmission of the virus.
  But reports have reached PN that PEP is generally not available to patients at HIV and GUM clinics. Health experts also fear the campaign could lead to an increase in sexual risk taking among gay men.
  THT is set to launch the campaign this month (July) targeting gay men in London and Brighton.
  “It will be raising their awareness of what PEP is and in what circumstances it will be available, and then where they can get hold of it,” said Will Nutland, the trust’s head of gay men’s health promotion.
  But Nutland warned: “It’s not a morning-after pill. It’s not one pill that you take the next day. The pills have huge side effects.
  “We’re working with one clinic in Brighton and six in London where we’re pretty certain PEP is available. But we’re also campaigning for all gay men to have a fair shot because we’re aware that at the moment it’s only available in an unequal way.”
  He denied the trust was advocating risk taking: “It is only an emergency last resort. But there’s no evidence that the availability of PEP leads to an increase in sexual risk taking.”
  PEP involves a month-long treatment with powerful antiretrovirals which can have serious side effects. The treatment also has not yet undergone ‘randomised studies’ to establish its effectiveness against sexual exposure, so they may not work in all cases.
  Another problem with PEP is that many people fail to realise they have been at risk.
  Dr David Hawkins, at the British Association of Sexual Health and HIV’s clinical effectiveness group, warned of its limitations: “It is not going to make a major impact on the HIV epidemic. For those at risk, then it’s an important thing to be available and to be discussed with clinicians."
• • Researchers at the Royal Free and University College Medical School have found that of 1,000 samples taken from gay men in London in 2000, nearly 11 per cent were positive for HIV, and one third of these were undiagnosed. Four per cent of men who claimed they knew their HIV status got it wrong.
    "High levels of unprotected anal intercourse continue to be reported by HIV positive and negative men and the potential for onward transmission of HIV and increasing prevalence is a major public helaht concern" the researchers continued

Tip Scale to fight Aids

Activists have presented the Chancellor with a massive petition demanding he tips the scale of funding to boost the fight against HIV over funding war. Campaigners from Action for South Africa (ACTSA), the National Union of Students (NUS) and UNISON called on Gordon Brown to pledge £1 billion per year to fight HIV/Aids internationally.

 

Doctors tell Blair of Cash Shortage in the NHS

Money has failed to reach front-line NHS patient services, despite government claims its is pumping in extra cash where it counts, according to doctors’ leaders.
British Medical Association chairman Dr James Johnson said lack of staff and money were blocking innovations in patient care.
The warning came as the BMA launched a new report highlighting 44 examples of innovative health schemes around the country.
Nine out of ten doctors questioned wanted to extend innovation but said they were hamstrung by lack of resources. More than half said funding difficulties were the main barrier while a third cited staff shortages.
Launching the report Dr Johnson said: ‘The money is not trickling down to doctors on the front-line. We’ve got good examples of what works and doctors are eager to explore new ways of delivering high quality care for patients but doctors must be involved in deciding how any new money for the NHS should be spent.”
He said the government needed to speak more to doctors and patients and pay less heed to NHS accountants.
The BMA dossier of innovation highlighted an instant HIV testing for African communities at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital at London Lighthouse, Notting Hill.
Consultant Dr Ann Sullivan said the hospital was the busiest in Europe with more than 4,000 HIV outpatients while the John Hunter GUM clinic now sees more than 60,000 patients a year.
The ‘Know for Sure’ testing programme has been offered as a walk-in service at Lighthouse every Monday evening since February 2003.
With 60 patients a month, there is at least one new HIV diagnosis every week, an eight per cent pick-up rate, much higher than the national testing average.
Dr Sullivan said rapid finger-print HIV testing was a great help to the West London African community because infection rates in this group were high and many black and ethnic minority patients were already very ill before being treated.
Early HIV testing had public health benefits and saved NHS money in the long run, she said.
Waiting lists for GUM clinic appointments averaged one week in London but were as long as 10 working days elsewhere UK.
“Sexual health is in crisis in the UK and patients still have difficulty accessing clinics,” added Dr Sullivan.
Dr Sullivan pledged that doctors "would always offer emergency care and treatments" irrespective of patients' individual immigration or asylum-seeking status.

The report also highlighted the outreach programme by the GUM team from Portsmouth which targets gay men in local bars and clubs for HIV testing and hepatitis B immunisation.

 

 

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